ATTORNEY-GENERAL

GPT: Saudi Arabia

Helen Goodman: To ask the Attorney-General what (a) meetings and (b) discussions he has had on allegations of corruption in the case of the GPT contract with Saudi Arabia.

Dominic Grieve: The Law Officers and the directors of the Law Officers' departments speak regularly on a wide range of issues, including progress on high profile cases. We do not comment on what was discussed.

GPT: Saudi Arabia

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Attorney-General whether the Serious Fraud Office is investigating allegations of bribery involving GPT, the UK subsidiary of EADS.

Dominic Grieve: The SFO can confirm that a number of allegations have been made against GPT Special Project Management Ltd and that these allegations are being considered by the SFO. The SFO has engaged with EADS, the parent company, on how these issues are to be addressed.

TRANSPORT

Aviation: Security

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions she has had with her EU counterparts on the UK's trial of the swabbing of religious and cultural headgear at airports.

Theresa Villiers: I have written to my EU counterparts and the European Commission setting out the cultural sensitivities of the screening of religious headgear, outlining the UK approach and encouraging them to put similar processes in place. A copy of this letter has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Bus Services: Finance

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  whether her Department has assessed the potential effect on journeys to work of her Department's reduction in financial support for bus services in April 2011;
	(2)  what estimate her Department has made of the level of bus services (a) in England, (b) in Cheshire, (c) in Merseyside and (d) nationally following her Department's funding reduction in April 2011.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport did not make any reductions in funding services effective from April 2011. However, following last year's spending review the Government announced that the rate at which Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) is paid to operators would be reduced by 20% from April 2012. At the time of the announcement, the Confederation of Passenger Transport, who represent the bus industry, indicated to me that, in general, this cut was manageable and would not result in a loss of services or a rise in fares.
	Changes to individual bus services are a matter for bus operators and local transport authorities. The Government do not and cannot make an assessment of every individual change but are working with local transport authorities to get an overall picture.
	The latest statistics on bus services can be found at the Department for Transport website and are updated periodically:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/statistics/series/buses/

East Coast Railway Line: Rolling Stock

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what work her Department has undertaken on replacing the (a) HST and (b) IC 225 rolling stock on the East Coast passenger rail franchise; and if she will publish the results of all such work.

Theresa Villiers: holding answer 3 November 2011
	The previous Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), announced to the House on 1 March 2011, Official Report, columns 185-187, that the Department was resuming the Intercity Express Programme (IEP) procurement with Agility Trains as the preferred bidder, and officials are working to bring the contract to a financial close as soon as is practicable. The trains procured within the IEP replace high speed trains on the Great Western and East Coast Main Lines. There is an option within the contract to replace the IC225 trains on the East Coast Main Line. Officials also engage with East Coast Ltd on matters relating to their rolling stock.
	It is not possible to publish details of this work for reasons of commercial confidentiality.

Great Western Railway Line: Overcrowding

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate she has made of the number of people who are required to stand on train services between London and Swindon because of a lack of capacity between (a) 7.00 am and 10.00 am and (b) 4.00 pm and 7.00 pm.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport would not routinely undertake an analysis of the number of people required to stand on a particular route, and figures are not available for services between London and Swindon.
	Statistics showing the proportion of standard class passengers standing on a typical weekday in autumn 2010 on services arriving at London terminals during the morning peak (07:00 to 09:59) and on services departing from London terminals during the afternoon peak (16:00 to 18:59) are published by the Office of Rail Regulation in the National Rail Trends Yearbook. These include figures for London Paddington, to which services from Swindon travel, but the figures are for all routes into Paddington combined and are not disaggregated.
	Under the terms of the franchise agreement with the Department, operators, in this case First Great Western, have an obligation to make best use of the trains they have to meet demand and provide the best passenger experience possible.

Railways: Standards

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate her Department has made of (a) the projected change in passenger numbers on rail services and (b) the number of carriages required to accommodate these numbers.

Theresa Villiers: holding answer 3 November 2011
	A number of estimates have been made of the projected demand changes in passenger numbers on rail services. Projected demand figures were used in setting the outputs required to be delivered under the 2007 HLOS statement. Estimates of future demand continue to play a part in decisions made on HLOS programme for delivering additional carriages to relieve crowding. The overall number and deployment of carriages on the network are dependent on a range of factors managed by the rail industry and no total has been determined.

SCOTLAND

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps the Government is taking to help small and medium-sized enterprises to grow in Scotland.

Michael Moore: The Government fully recognise the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises to the Scottish economy.
	We have put in place a wide range of measures under our Plan for Growth to ensure that Scottish SMEs, which are at the heart of our plans, are supported in their efforts to grow and export.

Businesses: Economic Environment

John Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps the Government plans to take to ensure a stable economic environment for businesses in Scotland.

David Mundell: The actions the Government took at the last spending review has brought stability, confidence, and the lowest interest rates in over 100 years to the UK economy. The Government's decisive action to tackle our deficit has put the UK ahead of the curve, and helped mitigate the risks that are weighing down on confidence elsewhere. The Government will stick to their course.

Apprenticeships

Brian H Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on cross-border recognition of apprenticeship qualifications.

David Mundell: Apprenticeships are underpinned by vocational qualifications like SVQs and NVQs, which in turn are based on national occupational standards. National occupational standards are developed on a UK-wide basis in conjunction with employers.

Welfare Reform Bill

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the potential effects in Scotland of implementation of the provisions of the Welfare Reform Bill.

David Mundell: The Secretary of State for Scotland, the right hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Michael Moore), and I are in contact with Scottish Ministers on this matter. Social security is a reserved matter, however a Legislative Consent Motion is required from the Scottish Parliament to cover some delivery aspects of the reforms in Scotland. I hope that through our ongoing dialogue Scottish Ministers will see the benefits of supporting a Legislative Consent Motion now.

Departmental Parliamentary Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether draft answers to parliamentary questions prepared by officials in his Department are cleared by special advisers (a) before and (b) after the relevant Minister.

David Mundell: Draft answers to parliamentary questions in the Scotland Office are routinely seen by the special adviser.

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many parliamentary questions for written answer on a named day by his Department were answered (a) on time, (b) five days late, (c) 10 days late, (d) 20 days late and (e) over 30 days late in each month since May 2010.

David Mundell: This information is not available in the form requested. However, the following table shows the number of named day parliamentary questions answered in each month:
	
		
			  Answered on time Answered Late 
			 May 2010 — — 
			 June 2010 1 0 
			 July 2010 25 5 
			 August 2010 — — 
			 September 2010 20 2 
			 October 2010 11 0 
			 November 2010 40 0 
			 December 2010 5 0 
			 January 2011 3 0 
			 February 2011 11 0 
			 March 2011 14 1 
			 April 2011 3 0 
			 May 2011 12 0 
			 June 2011 8 0 
		
	
	
		
			 July 2011 12 2 
			 August 2011 — — 
			 September 2011 6 0 
			 October 2011 6 0 
			 Total 177 10 
		
	
	The Government have committed to providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance on a sessional basis and will provide full information to the Committee at the end of the session. Statistics relating to Government Department's performance for the 2009-10 parliamentary session were previously provided to the Committee and are available on the Parliament website.

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many parliamentary questions for (a) ordinary written answer and (b) written answer on a named day by his Department have remained unanswered for a period of two months since May 2010.

David Mundell: None.
	The Government have committed to providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance on a sessional basis and will provide full information to the Committee at the end of the session. Statistics relating to Government Department's performance for the 2009-10 parliamentary session were previously provided to the Committee and are available on the Parliament website.

Unemployment: Females

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to reduce the level of female unemployment in Scotland.

David Mundell: The Government want to reduce unemployment whether it affects women or men, young or old, able-bodied or disabled people.
	That is why we are taking action to create the environment for sustained economic growth, which is necessary for the creation of secure, sustainable jobs.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what steps her Department plans to take to address levels of alcohol-related incidents resulting in deaths and personal injuries;
	(2)  what steps her Department is taking to reduce levels of alcohol-induced violence.

James Brokenshire: The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 ("the 2011 Act"), introduced by this Government, rebalances the Licensing Act 2003 ("the 2003 Act") in favour of local communities. The new package of measures will give them the powers they need to reduce alcohol-related violence, deaths and personal injuries. They will make it easier for licensing authorities to remove licences from, or refuse to grant licences to, premises that are causing problems.
	The 2011 Act will, for example, extend the scope of Early Morning Restriction Orders, which are an additional tool for licensing authorities to reduce levels of alcohol-induced crime and promote public safety in their area by restricting alcohol sales late at night.
	The Act also contains provisions which give licensing authorities the power to introduce a 'late night levy' in their area. This will mean that businesses which profit from supplying alcohol late at night make a contribution towards the costs of policing the late night economy.
	It will also make licensing authorities and health bodies responsible authorities under the 2003 Act.
	We will bring together the Government's approach on alcohol strategy (published by the Department of Health) later this year. It will address the full range of harm from alcohol and all those partners with a direct role to play in tackling them.

Asylum

David Heyes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many legacy asylum seekers are resident in Ashton-under-Lyne constituency; in each year since March 2007; and how many such asylum seekers receive support from the National Asylum Support Service.

Damian Green: 130 legacy asylum seekers have been resident in Ashton-under-Lyne since March 2007, of these 40 cases have been identified as asylum seekers receiving support from the National Asylum Support Service.
	All figures quoted are internal management information only and are subject to change. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols.
	Notes:
	1. Figures rounded to the nearest 5 (‘-’= 0, * = 1 or 2). Figures may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding.
	2. Figures were extracted on 26 October 2011.

Crimes of Violence: Night Clubs

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what steps she plans to take to reduce the number of violent incidents involving glass bottles in nightclubs;
	(2)  whether she has made an assessment of the likely effect of a ban on glass bottles in nightclubs with a history of violent offences.

James Brokenshire: The Government recognise the importance of glassware bans in limiting alcohol-related violence and the harms it causes. We have taken steps, through the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 (the 2011 Act), to ensure that the police and licensing authorities have the powers they need to do impose them.
	The Licensing Act 2003 allows licensing authorities (LAs) to impose conditions that promote public protection objectives, including the prevention of crime and disorder; and public safety. Bans on the use of bottles by customers; requirements for the use of safer alternatives to traditional glassware; and bans on customers exiting with glassware are common conditions. Other types of condition, such as those that require the use of security staff, or regular glass collections, can also reduce the potential for violent incidents involving glassware.
	The 2011 Act put communities and the police in a much better position to prevent alcohol-related crime and disorder, including the imposition of conditions restricting glassware at specific premises. For example, the 2011 Act will lower the test that applies to LAs' decisions from
	“necessary for the promotion of the licensing objectives”
	to
	“appropriate for the promotion of the licensing objectives”.
	This will mean, for example, that if the police have a concern about a particular premises, due to its nature or history, they will be able seek the imposition of appropriate conditions. We do not consider that a ban on glass bottles should apply to all premises of a particular type, because we recognise that many premises operate responsibly, and without violent incidents.

Driving Offences: Speed Limits

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men and (b) women aged (i) between 17 and 21, (ii) between 22 and 24, (iii) between 25 and 30, (iv) between 31 and 35, (v) between 36 and 40 and (vi) over 41 years who were identified by a police force as having exceeded the speed limit opted to attend a driving safety course in lieu of penalty points in each police authority area in the last 12 months. [R]

James Brokenshire: This information is not collected centrally.

Licensing Laws: Olympic Games 2012

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she plans to take steps to ensure that sufficient late night licences are made available to pubs and restaurants to enable visitors to the London 2012 Olympics to use their services.

James Brokenshire: Licensing hours are determined by local authorities under the Licensing Act 2003. Pubs and restaurants that already have a licence to open late will be able to open as they do now. Those that wish to open longer during the Olympics can do so by applying for an extension using a Temporary Event Notice (TEN). TENs are administered by local authorities and, under the current system, the police can object on crime and disorder grounds. We considered whether to use the powers available to the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) under section 172 of the 2003 Act to make a licensing hours order in relation to the Olympics period. This would have allowed licensed premises to open for longer without needing a TEN. In consultation with the police and others, we decided it would not be appropriate to do so.

Sexual Offences

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the Statements of 1 November 2011, on gang-related violence, which Department will be responsible for services for young victims of sexual violence and what the territorial extent is of her proposals.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office will be investing at least £1.2 million of additional resource over the next three years in improving services for young people under 18 suffering sexual violence in our major urban areas—with a new focus on the girls and young women caught up in gang related rape and abuse. This funding will commence in 2012-13. Further proposals for how funding will be distributed will be developed with the Home Office Sexual Violence Forum. A decision on which areas will be supported has therefore not yet been taken.

UK Border Agency: Training

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what new training initiatives to maintain expertise the UK Border Agency has undertaken in 2011.

Damian Green: There is a range of new and continuing training initiatives in the UK Border Agency to maintain operational skills, refresh and build on expertise, and increase the competence and capability of civil servants who deliver a service to the public. The subjects covered by new initiatives in 2011 have included, among others, asylum claims from minors; cases involving trafficking and torture victims; lesbian, gay, transgender and bisexual applicants; family removals; and interview techniques.
	Over 1,000 staff from across the Agency have been trained to enable them to undertake essential operational duties in the case of a critical incident. Training is also being given to existing and retired staff as well as others on loan from other Departments, to serve at the border control during the test and real events of the Olympics and Paralympics next year.
	In addition, the UK Border Agency is continually strengthening the skills and behaviours of its leaders and managers through a range of learning and development activities; and all staff are required to undertake regular refresher training in relation to the protection of personal and sensitive data.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Adam Werritty

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether (a) he, (b) any Ministers and (c) officials of his Department have met (i) Mr Michael Hintze, (ii) Mr Tony Buckingham, (iii) Mr Michael Davis, (iv) Mr Poju Zabludowicz, (v) Jon Moulton and (vi) Stephen Crouch; and where any such meetings took place.

John Penrose: The Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), attended and spoke at the opening of the Wandsworth Museum on 1 September 2010, invited by Michael Hintze. He also attended a Victoria and Albert Museum dinner for Raphael: Cartoons and Tapestries for the Sistine Chapel which was hosted by Dorothy and Michael Hintze on 6 September 2010.
	The Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries (Mr Vaizey), had an informal meeting with Michael Hintze on 21 July 2011. He also accepted an invitation from Michael and Dorothy Hintze to attend a private reception and view of the Leonardo exhibition at the National Gallery on 14 November 2011.
	No other Ministers or departmental officials have had meetings with Michael Hintze, Tony Buckingham, Michael Davis, Poju Zabludowicz, Jon Moulton or Stephen Crouch.

Broadband

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how he proposes that the recently announced £530 million to support the UK's broadband network will be allocated.

Edward Vaizey: I announced the allocation of funding to support roll-out of superfast broadband on the following dates: Wales on 12 July, Northern Ireland on 15 August and England and Scotland on 16 August 2011. Details of the allocations can be found on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) website, using the link:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/telecommunications_and_online/7763.aspx

Charities

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what grants his Department made to charitable organisations in each of the last five years.

John Penrose: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Vale of Clwyd (Chris Ruane) on 28 March 2011, Official Report, columns 25-28W.

Chief Scientific Advisers

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when he expects to fill the position of chief scientific adviser in his Department.

John Penrose: This matter is still being considered. While we do so, the Department is supported in accessing expert scientific advice by its Evidence and Analysis Unit and Scientific Research Advisory Committee.

Departmental Freedom of Information

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 his Department has received in each month since May 2010; how many responses given in each such month disclosed (a) the full information requested, (b) part of the information requested, with some information withheld under exemptions in the Act and (c) none of the information requested; and in respect of how many requests received in each such month (i) (A) substantive and (B) holding responses were issued within 20 working days of the date of receipt, (ii) no substantive response was issued within 40 working days of the date of receipt and (iii) no substantive response has yet been issued.

John Penrose: The Ministry of Justice publish quarterly statistics on the handling of requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act in central Government. The information you have requested can be found within these publications, which are available at the following link:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/foi/implementation-editions.htm

Departmental Freedom of Information

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport in respect of how many responses to requests for information received by his Department under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 the reason of (a) commercially sensitive information, (b) information not held, (c) information too costly to provide and (d) vexatious or repeated requests has been given in response since January 2010.

John Penrose: The information you have requested can be found in the following table:
	
		
			 Reason cited in FoI response Number 
			 Section 43 (commercial interests) 22 
			 Information not held by the Department 159 
			 Request exceeds cost limit 39 
			 Request considered vexatious (1)1 
			 (1 )This category applied to just one part of a request for various pieces of information.

Departmental Public Appointments

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what proportion of those appointed to public bodies sponsored by his Department who declared a political affiliation declared affiliation to the (a) Conservative and (b) Labour party between May 2010 and October 2011.

Jeremy Hunt: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 6 July 2011, Official Report, column 1252W.

Departmental Public Appointments

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what proportion of appointments to public bodies sponsored by his Department were women in the period from May 2010 to October 2011.

John Penrose: The number of the Department's ministerial public appointments, including reappointments, made from 1 May 2010 to 31 October 2011, was 162, of whom 37% were female.
	Information on the Department's individual public appointments is published on our website:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/about_us/public_appointments/1006.aspx

Departmental Public Appointments

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to increase the proportion of women on the boards of public bodies sponsored by his Department.

John Penrose: The Department has an established programme of work to encourage individuals from under-represented groups to apply for public appointments. This includes publicising vacant roles widely and running a number of targeted networking events each year for women and other potential applicants from diverse backgrounds to meet board members of the Department's arm's length bodies and officials, to learn more about public appointments and other opportunities within those bodies.

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many parliamentary questions for written answer on a named day by his Department were answered (a) on time, (b) five days late, (c) 10 days late, (d) 20 days late and (e) over 30 days late in each month since May 2010.

John Penrose: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport aims to give all named day parliamentary questions a substantive reply on the specific named day.
	The following table shows the details requested since May 2010:
	
		
			  Total number of named day questions Answered on the named day Answered within five days Answered within 10 days Answered within 20 days Answered after 30 days 
			 2010       
			 May 2 2 0 0 0 0 
			 June 15 11 4 0 0 0 
			 July 34 21 7 4 2 0 
			 August 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 September 17 17 0 0 0 0 
			 October 27 17 8 1 1 0 
			 November 38 30 8 0 0 0 
			 December 41 37 1 0 2 1 
			        
			 2011       
			 January 45 33 10 0 0 2 
			 February 49 40 8 0 0 1 
			 March 62 38 23 1 0 0 
			 April 26 16 7 2 1 0 
			 May 45 35 9 0 0 1 
			 June 60 48 12 0 0 0 
			 July 73 63 9 0 0 1 
			 August 1 1 0 0 0 0 
			 September 22 20 1 0 0 1 
			 October 54 50 4 0 0 0 
		
	
	The Government have committed to providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance on a sessional basis and will provide full information to the Committee at the end of the Session. Statistics relating to Government Departments' performance for the 2009-10 parliamentary Session were previously provided to the Committee and are available on the Parliament website.

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many parliamentary questions for (a) ordinary written answer and (b) written answer on a named day by his Department have remained unanswered for a period of two months since May 2010.

John Penrose: Since May 2010, in DCMS there have been no occasions where either ordinary written parliamentary questions or named day parliamentary questions have remained unanswered for a period of two months.
	The Government have committed to providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance on a sessional basis and will provide full information to the Committee at the end of the Session. Statistics relating to Government Department's performance for the 2009-10 parliamentary Session were previously provided to the Committee and are available on the Parliament website.

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether draft answers to parliamentary questions prepared by officials in his Department are cleared by special advisers (a) before and (b) after the relevant Minister.

John Penrose: As part of the Department's processes, answers to parliamentary questions are initially approved by special advisers before they are cleared with the relevant Minister, who is ultimately responsible for answering.

Ofcom

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to work with (a) Ofcom and (b) mobile telephone network operators to increase 3G phone signal coverage in (i) East Cleveland, (ii) Redcar and Cleveland and (iii) the North East.

Edward Vaizey: The Government recently announced that they were providing an additional £150 million to improve mobile phone coverage in the UK. The principal consideration when considering the optimal use of the £150 million for mobile masts will be to fill in not-spots in the national 2G mobile coverage and raise the coverage level to 99% and we will be working with Ofcom and other stakeholders to determine where best to site these new masts.
	No decisions on locating masts have yet been made. In making those decisions, consideration will be given to the requirements of hosting other technologies such as 3G to improve the coverage of that technology too. Looking further in the future we envisage that 4G could be hosted on the new structures as well.

Olympic Games 2012: Voluntary Work

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will agree to publish by region the number of volunteers accepted for the Olympic Games when the process of recruitment is complete.

Hugh Robertson: There are a number of London 2012 related volunteer schemes in place. The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG)'s Games Makers scheme will recruit up to 70,000 volunteers, and is conducting 100,000 interviews across the United Kingdom, which will continue through until April 2012. The Greater London Authority's London Ambassador scheme will recruit up to 8,000 volunteers. There are also volunteer schemes in place in games venue cities at Cardiff, Coventry, Essex, Eton Dorney, Glasgow, Kent, Newcastle, Manchester, Surrey, and Weymouth and Portland. In addition the British Airports Authority, British Airways, Network Rail, the British Olympic Association and a number of local authorities are intending to run their own volunteer schemes connected to the games, either recruiting externally or redeploying existing staff. We are also aware that other local authorities are intending to use existing volunteer schemes to support games-related activity such as the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relays. The publication of figures relating to the regional distribution of the volunteers recruited are a matter for each individual scheme, but it is clear that a number of opportunities exist for those across the entire UK to volunteer to support the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Radio Frequencies

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what meetings (a) he and (b) officials in his Department have had to discuss the proposed auction of the 4G spectrum.

Edward Vaizey: My officials and I have regular meetings with Ofcom to discuss the 4G auction. Additionally, there have been meetings with all mobile operators and with Research in Motion (RIM), Intellect (a trade body that represents the telecommunications industry), British Entertainment Industry Radio Group, Intel, the Federation of Communication Services, Motorola, the Broadband Stakeholders Group and other Government Departments. The auction has also been discussed with the European Commission and officials from other countries. Meetings with these stakeholders have taken place on a number of occasions.

Radio Frequencies

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent estimate he has made of the revenue from annual licence fees foregone due to the time taken to hold the proposed auction of the 4G spectrum.

Edward Vaizey: I have made no assessment of foregone annual licence fees. Operators liable to pay these fees will do so at the current rates set by Ofcom, who will reassess these fees after the auction, as required by the Direction that came into force in December 2010.

Sign Language

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the number of British Sign Language interpreters in the UK.

Edward Vaizey: This Department has not commissioned any research into the numbers of British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters in the UK. According to the UK register of Sign Language Interpreters there are currently 682 BSL interpreters who meet the minimum standard required for commercial video relay provision (‘Member of the Register’ level). The register also lists 163 junior trainee interpreters and 114 trainee interpreters. The register is a public document available at:
	http://portal.nrcpd.org.uk/search/

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment he has made of the efficiency of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.

Maria Miller: The Government inherited a situation where, as a result of a failure of IT systems, two child maintenance schemes are running in parallel. Also, weaknesses in the IT systems mean around 100,000 cases have to be managed off the system. More than three million children live in separated families, but only around 50% of those benefit from an effective maintenance arrangement. In addition the annual running costs of the statutory maintenance scheme are approximately £450 million, on average a cost of around 40p for each £1 of child maintenance collected or arranged. This represents neither efficiency nor cost-effectiveness.
	The consultation document published in January—‘Strengthening families, promoting parental responsibility: the future of child maintenance’—outlines our assessment of some of the issues of the current system and sets out our plans for the radical reshaping of the child maintenance system. The Government's response to the consultation was published on 12 July.
	We want to make it the norm in society that parents take responsibility for putting in place financial support for their children post separation. Research suggests that just over half of parents currently using the statutory maintenance scheme feel they could make their own financial arrangements for their children with the right help. For those families who cannot make a family-based arrangement, the Government are continuing to invest in a new streamlined child maintenance scheme to replace the existing CSA schemes in order to deliver a significantly improved service.

Employment Schemes: Contracts

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's risk assessment of Work programme contractors.

Chris Grayling: All organisations selected as Work programme contractors were required to satisfy the Department that they have the capacity, including the financial capacity, to implement and deliver their contracts. Individual assessments include commercially sensitive information that the Department cannot publish.

Employment Schemes: Contracts

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he proposes to take to ensure the Merlin Standard supports organisations named in successful prime provider bids for the work programme but which have subsequently (a) been unable to agree a contract with the successful prime provider and (b) received no payments under a contract agreed with the successful prime provider.

Chris Grayling: The Merlin Standard™ is a Department for Work and Pensions and Welfare to Work industry developed standard of excellence in supply chain management.
	The Merlin Standard provides a mechanism to measure that Primes are following through on the commitments signed up to with their supply chain partners; it does not directly set the parameters or define the content of those discussions.
	DWP has implemented the Merlin Standard to ensure fair treatment of sub-contractors by prime providers. Providers will be penalised for non-compliance with the standard.

Employment: Disability

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent steps his Department has taken to support people with learning disabilities into sustainable work; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Miller: The Government are committed to ensuring that all disabled people, including people with learning disabilities, have the opportunities, chances and support that they need to get a job and remain in employment.
	For example, the Work programme, launched on 10 June 2011 is the biggest single Welfare to Work programme which will provide more personalised back-to-work support for unemployed people, including disabled people.
	For disabled people with more complex needs which cannot be met through the Work programme, they can access Work Choice, which provides tailored support to help disabled people who face the most complex barriers to employment, find and stay in work and ultimately help them progress into unsupported employment, where it is appropriate for the individual. Work choice contracted providers aim to help around 9,000 disabled people into work per annum. In addition to the contracted provision, Remploy Employment Services has a target to deliver 7,500 hob outcomes through Work Choice in 2011-12. Support can also be provided through Access to Work, Remploy and Residential Training.
	In December 2010, the Government asked Liz Sayce, the chief executive of the disability organisation RADAR to undertake an independent review of specialist employment support for disabled people, specifically Remploy, Residential Training Colleges and the Access to Work programme. The Government's response and a separate public consultation was launched on 11 July 2011. I as the Minister for Disabled People welcomed the central theme of the review, that resources for supporting disabled people into employment should be focused on disabled people themselves rather than on specific institutions. The consultation closed on Monday 17 October 2011. We are currently analysing responses and will produce a summary of responses as soon as practicably possible.
	DWP is also working with Department for Education through the SEN Green Paper to look at how we can improve transition from education to work, so that young people with special educational needs (including learning disabilities) are better prepared and supported when looking for employment.

Independent Living Fund

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to bring forward a replacement for the Independent Living Fund.

Maria Miller: The ILF is a discretionary trust and payments do not take precedence over the responsibility of the local authority to meet the eligible care and support needs of local people.
	As announced in my written ministerial statement of 13 December 2010, Official  Report, columns 85-86WS, we are committed to consulting on how current recipients of payments from the Independent Living Fund will be supported from 2015.

Major Projects Authority

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library any evaluation of his Department's programme conducted by the Major Projects Authority.

Crispin Blunt: I have been asked to reply.
	There is currently no formal evaluation of the Greater London Authority (GLA) offender employment pilot projects.

Motability

Anne McGuire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what savings he expects to accrue to his Department on expenditure on the higher rate mobility element as a result of recent changes announced to the Motability scheme.

Maria Miller: The criteria for receiving a Motability vehicle, is receipt of the higher rate mobility component of disability living allowance or war pensioners mobility supplement. Provided they have at least 12 months remaining of their award, recipients may choose to exchange all or part of that component for a Motability vehicle. Motability vehicles are therefore not supplied at public expense and Motability is largely self-financed.
	This benefit remains payable whether or not the recipient chooses to lease a Motability vehicle, therefore changes made to the scheme by Motability will not have any impact on departmental expenditure.

Motability

Anne McGuire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions he had with the trustees of Motability on the recent changes made to the scheme; and on what dates such discussions took place.

Maria Miller: Motability administer the Specialised Vehicles Fund on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. DWP officials meet with Motability to discuss the performance of the Specialised Vehicles Fund and the operation of the scheme more widely on a regular basis.
	DWP Ministers also meet with Motability on occasion to ensure they remain well informed about a scheme which many recipients of the DLA mobility component rely upon.

Motability

Anne McGuire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what consultation the trustees of Motability undertook with disabled people before introducing recent changes to the scheme.

Maria Miller: While this Department works closely with Motability, it is an independent charity and is wholly responsible the administration of the Motability scheme.
	Specific questions relating to scheme policy or the operation of the scheme should be directed to Motability and can be sent to: Declan O'Mahony, Director, Motability, Warwick House, Roydon Road, Harlow, Essex CM19 5PX.
	Motability have agreed to write separately to the right hon. Lady with such information as they have available regarding consultations they may have undertaken.

Personal Income

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate has been made of the average income of (a) social rental, (b) private rental and (c) all households in (i) each region of the UK, (ii) Dudley borough and (iii) Dudley North constituency in the latest period for which figures are available.

Steve Webb: We use Households Below Average Income data to provide estimates of median incomes. However, the sample size of this survey is not sufficient to provide estimates for Dudley borough and Dudley North constituency.
	The following tables show the median equivalised disposable household income by tenure and for all households for the regions and countries of the United Kingdom, before and after housing costs.
	
		
			 Table 1: Median equivalised disposable household income, by tenure and for all households for the regions and countries of the United Kingdom, three year average 2007-08 to 2009-10, before housing costs 
			  Weekly median equivalised disposable household income (£) 
			 Region of the UK Social rented Privately rented All households 
			 North-east 286 315 360 
			 North-west 296 338 377 
		
	
	
		
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 290 328 .370 
			 East midlands 281 339 380 
			 West midlands 288 342 380 
			 East 305 391 429 
			 London 317 491 462 
			 South-east 310 426 462 
			 South-west 308 378 407 
			 Scotland 290 337 396 
			 Wales 279 321 371 
			 Northern Ireland 274 337 363 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Median equivalised disposable household income, by tenure and for all households for the regions and countries of the United Kingdom, three year average 2007-08 to 2009-10, after housing costs 
			  Weekly median equivalised disposable household income (£) 
			 Region of the UK Social rented Privately rented All households 
			 North-east 227 243 326 
			 North-west 230 249 343 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 229 249 331 
			 East midlands 221 252 345 
			 West midlands 220 260 342 
			 East 235 295 383 
			 London 219 315 382 
			 South-east 228 306 408 
			 South-west 236 270 358 
			 Scotland 240 269 365 
			 Wales 218 242 336 
			 Northern Ireland 239 279 335 
		
	
	
		
			 Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data sourced from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). This uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 2. Net disposable incomes have been used to answer the question. This includes earnings from employment and self-employment, state support, income from occupational and private pensions, investment income and other sources. Income tax, payments, national insurance contributions, council tax/domestic rates and some other payments are deducted from incomes. 3. Figures have been presented on a before housing cost and an after housing cost basis. For before housing costs, housing costs are not deducted from income, while for after housing costs they are. 4. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 5. The reference period for HBAI figures is the financial year. For countries and regions within the UK, three survey years have been combined because single year estimates are not considered to be sufficiently reliable. 6. Weekly incomes are presented in 2009-10 prices and have been rounded to the nearest pound. 7. Analysis has been carried out at the household level. 8. The estimates for all households include those households who are owner occupiers, as well as those in the social and privately rented sector. Source: Households Below Average Income (HBAI) 2007-08 to 2009-10

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Coastal Areas: Access

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding (a) her Department and (b) Natural England plans to provide for coastal paths in each of the next three years.

Richard Benyon: Natural England is responsible for the delivery of the right of coastal access under the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009. It has estimated that the costs to deliver coastal access at Weymouth and in the five lead stretches where it has started work will be £34,000, £40,000 and £165,000 in the years 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 respectively.
	These estimated costs include payments to access authorities for their contribution to the delivery of coastal access (principally staff time), and the physical establishment of the coastal route, such as the costs of gates, steps and signs. There will be additional costs of Natural England staff involved in delivering the Weymouth stretch and the other five lead stretches.

Japanese Knotweed

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to prevent the spread of Japanese knotweed.

Richard Benyon: A controlled release of the highly specialist psyllid Aphalara itadori is currently under way to help control Japanese knotweed. If successful, this should restrict its growth, slow its capacity to spread vigorously and enhance the effectiveness of management effort.
	Because of its invasive nature Japanese knotweed is listed on Schedule 9 and subject to section 14 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, making it an offence to plant, or cause this species to grow, in the wild.
	Under cross-compliance rules, farmers in receipt of the single farm payment are required to take reasonable steps to prevent its spread.
	Japanese knotweed is regarded as controlled waste and as such its disposal is governed by waste disposal regulations.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Animal Experiments

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if his Department will consult local planning officials on B&K Universal's plans for a new beagle breeding facility and the requirements for establishments and for the care and accommodation of animals in Directive 2010/63/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes.

Bob Neill: B&K Universal Ltd's planning application to expand its animal breeding facilities at Grimston Park near Hull was refused by the East Riding of Yorkshire Council in June and an appeal lodged with the Planning Inspectorate. Because the proposals have given rise to substantial regional or national controversy the appeal will be decided by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the right hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles). He will take into account all material considerations before coming to his decision.

Audit Commission

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government under what budget headings he expects the estimated savings resulting from the abolition of the Audit Commission to be made.

Bob Neill: The abolition of the Audit Commission will benefit local authorities directly by removing the need for a “topslice” of audit fees to fund the commission's corporate centre, as well as ending government grants allocated to the commission to undertake certain other functions. The abolition of burdensome inspection, such as comprehensive area assessment, is already saving taxpayers money. Further detail on savings and costs will be included in the impact assessment accompanying the draft legislation that we intend to publish in due course.

Audit Commission

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate the Audit Commission has made of the cost of its abolition arising from (a) redundancy payments, (b) pension liabilities, (c) lease termination and (d) other costs.

Bob Neill: The details will be included in the impact assessment accompanying the draft legislation that we intend to publish in due course.

Bell Pottinger Group

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether (a) Ministers, (b) officials and (c) political advisers in his Department have met representatives of (i) Bell Pottinger Group or (ii) each of its subsidiaries in the last five years; on what dates any such meetings took place; and what was discussed.

Bob Neill: The information requested is not held centrally and to assemble it would entail disproportionate cost.

Departmental Freedom of Information

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 his Department has received in each month since May 2010; how many responses given in each such month disclosed (a) the full information requested, (b) part of the information requested, with some information withheld under exemptions in the Act and (c) none of the information requested; and in respect of how many requests received in each such month (i) (A) substantive and (B) holding responses were issued within 20 working days of the date of receipt, (ii) no substantive response was issued within 40 working days of the date of receipt and (iii) no substantive response has yet been issued.

Bob Neill: Figures at the level of detail requested for Freedom of Information requests by month are not readily available because our systems are designed to report on a quarterly basis. Quarterly figures for departmental performance in granting or refusing requests and timeliness of handling are published by Ministry of Justice on its website. The statistics for each quarter of 2010 and the first quarter of 2011 can be found in reusable form in tables 1, 2 and 3 at:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/foi/implementation-editions.htm
	and those for the second quarter of 2011 at:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/foi/implementation.htm
	Ministry of Justice will publish corresponding figures for the third quarter of 2011 later this year or early in 2012.

Departmental Press: Subscriptions

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade profession magazines in 2010-11.

Bob Neill: The Department spent £113,308 on newspapers, periodicals and trade profession magazines in 2009-10; this was reduced to £93,601 in 2010-11, and my Department is taking further steps to reduce administrative spending across the board.
	I also refer my hon. Friend to my answer of 31 January 2011, Official Report, column 530W, outlining how Ministers have consolidated seven separate sets of newspapers and how the Department has reduced the cost of the press cuttings services compared to the level of spending under the last administration.

Departmental Regulation

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many regulations his Department has introduced (a) in the six months prior to 1 September 2010 and (b) in the six months after 1 September 2010 which it has determined do not impose costs on businesses;
	(2)  how many regulations that impose costs on businesses his Department has (a) introduced and (b) removed since 1 September 2010; what the net effect on the costs on businesses of such introductions and removals was; and what regulations have been excluded from the one-in one-out system because they address (i) emergencies and (ii) systemic financial risks since 1 September 2010;
	(3)  how many regulations that impose costs on businesses his Department (a) introduced and (b) removed in the six months prior to 1 September 2010; and what the net effect on the costs on businesses of such introductions and removals was.

Bob Neill: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my right hon. Friend the Member for Wokingham (Mr Redwood), on 24 November 2010, Official Report, columns 304-05W; my answer to the hon. Member for Ochil and South Perthshire (Gordon Banks) on 22 March 2011, Official Report, columns 911-12W; and my answer to the hon. Member for Ochil and South Perthshire (Gordon Banks) on 3 November 2011, Official Report, columns 777-80W.
	More detail on the impact, or lack of regulatory impact, of statutory instruments can be found in their associated Explanatory Memorandum, which are available in the public domain at:
	http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi
	Statutory instruments should not necessarily be viewed as regulations—they are pieces of secondary legislation which ensure policy and functional measures have parliamentary oversight.
	I also refer him to my Department's Statement of New Regulation of September 2011, which outlines measures to reduce the burdens on business by an estimated £4.26
	million per year:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/secondstatementregulation2011

Emergencies

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many full-time equivalent staff work on the (a) regional response and (b) site clearance workstream of the Capabilities programme; and what the staffing level was in each of the last 10 quarters;
	(2)  who the lead Minister in his Department is for the (a) regional response and (b) site clearance workstream of the Capabilities programme;
	(3)  what the budget was for the regional response workstream of the Capabilities programme in each year since 2005; and what the budget will be during the comprehensive spending review period.

Bob Neill: I am the Minister for Fire and Resilience in the Department. Following the closure of the Government offices for the regions on 31 March 2011, the functions of the former regional resilience teams transferred to the Resilience and Emergencies Division in my Department. The division comprises 53 FTE staff (which can be augmented by volunteers from elsewhere in the Department when necessary). This is approximately 20% fewer staff than employed in the former regional resilience teams, but provides the same Government support to local responders in emergency preparedness and response (the ‘regional response capability’), as well as continuing to discharge the Department's lead Government Department responsibilities. This includes the site clearance workstream. It is not possible to apportion staff time to individual workstreams as at any one time resilience advisers will be contributing to the full range of workstreams in the Capabilities programme according to the risks faced in a given locality. There is no budgetary provision for specific workstreams.

Ex-servicemen: Finance

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what statutory funding his Department provides for veterans' organisations.

Grant Shapps: There is no statutory funding that my Department is obliged to provide to veteran organisations, although a number of measures have been put in place to support serving and ex-service personnel and their families.
	We are improving access to housing for service personnel. We have ensured that members of the armed forces are placed at the top of the priority list for Government funded home ownership schemes. For example, FirstBuy homes became available in September and members of the armed forces are already being helped through the scheme to purchase a home of their own.
	Government are also working with the credit reference agencies and the Royal Mail on standardising British Forces Post Office addresses, so that service and ex-service personnel who serve overseas or previously lived on army bases with non-standard British Forces Post Office addresses, are not disadvantaged when applying for a mortgage.
	We plan to consult on proposals to ensure that former service personnel who have urgent housing needs are always given high priority for social housing—so they will be at, or near the top, of any waiting list—and that service personnel who move from base-to-base do not lose their qualification rights. We also plan to consult on statutory guidance to local authorities on the allocation of social housing, setting out the different ways in which provision can be made in councils' allocation schemes for all serving, or former, service personnel to be given appropriate priority, including using local preference criteria and local lettings policies.
	Through the Ministerial Working Group on Homelessness we are tackling homelessness among ex service personnel. We have put measures in place to ensure there is better working across Government and with the Voluntary and Community Sector to support those veterans experiencing homelessness many years after discharge. We will be working closely with the new Veterans' Information Service and the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency to promote the through-life support available to former members of the armed forces.
	The Government have also doubled the level of council tax relief (to 50%) given to military personnel serving on operations overseas.

Fire Services: Pensions

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his Department's latest analysis is of the financial viability of the Fire Service Pension Scheme.

Bob Neill: The most recent actuarial valuation of the Firefighters' Pension Scheme (1992) and the New Firefighters' Pension Scheme (2006) in England found that the total liability for all accrued benefits was £13.8 billion as at 31 March 2007:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/fire/pdf/ActuarialValutaionGADReport.pdf
	In the two firefighters' pension schemes, the deficit between scheme income and expenditure in 2008-09 was £259 million; in 2009-10 it was £302 million; whilst un- audited data received for 2010-11 show that this has fallen to £296 million due to a reduction in one-off commutation lump sum expenditure of £38.4 million:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/pdf/19559041.pdf
	The current reforms to public service pensions proposed by the Government, and being considered in scheme specific discussions, will bring about long-term sustainability and fairness, and will rebalance costs between public sector workers and other taxpayers.

Housing Benefit

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what methodology he plans to use to calculate surplus bedrooms in respect of his planned changes to housing benefit eligibility; and how often he plans to make such an assessment.

Steve Webb: I have been asked to reply.
	The level of under-occupation used to assess housing benefit for working-age claimants living in the social rented sector will be based on the local housing allowance size criteria used for assessing the level of housing benefit in the private rented sector.
	The number of bedrooms in properties in the social rented sector is designated by the landlord (registered provider or housing association) or local housing authority. This is intended to be used to determine the size of a property.
	As now, claimants will be expected to notify any changes in household composition so that the size criteria assessment can be reviewed as appropriate.

Housing Benefit: Foster Care

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the potential effects on foster carers of the loss of housing benefit from April 2013 for those in social housing who have surplus bedrooms.

Steve Webb: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government estimates that there are less than 5,000 foster carers under the age of 60, living in the social rented sector and in receipt of housing benefit. Figures from a survey undertaken by the Fostering Network during 2010 suggested that there were around 2,000 foster carers living in the social rented sector. The extent to which the April 2013 changes will affect individual foster carers will depend on their response to how they meet any shortfall, which is not possible to predict.
	In some circumstances local authorities may decide to make discretionary housing payments to help meet any shortfalls.

Land: Public Sector

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to dispose of disused public sector land and empty offices.

Grant Shapps: I refer my hon. Friend to my answer of 31 October 2011, Official Report, column 584, to my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West (Mr Amess), where I set out how we are leading an ambitious cross-Government programme to release surplus public land for up to 100,000 homes over the spending review period, using our innovative Build Now, Pay Later model wherever possible, so that house builders pay for the land only after homes are built.
	Alongside this we have also been running the Capital and Assets Pathfinder programme to make better use of public sector assets, and to improve transparency we have brought land and property data from a number of public organisations together on one website. Through our new Community Right to Reclaim Land, we are enabling communities to get underused public property back in use. And to make it easier to turn vacant offices into new homes we have consulted on removing the planning approval requirement for changing use from a commercial property to a residential property.

Local Government: Maladministration

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many maladministration cases in which the local government ombudsman's decision has been challenged have been referred to the courts in each of the last 10 years.

Bob Neill: Since 2006 there have been a total of 52 formal challenges to the ombudsman's decisions by way of application for judicial review in the High Court.
	By year, these formal challenges numbered as follows:
	
		
			  Judicial review application 
			 2006 14 
			 2007 11 
			 2008 8 
			 2009 6 
			 2010 9 
			 2011 4 
		
	
	In addition, the local government ombudsman's annual report for 2004-05 states that:
	"In 2004-05 there were seven cases of judicial review. There was no fault by the Ombudsman found in any of these cases. (Figures for 2003-04 were identical, seven cases with no fault found.)"
	No data are available for years prior to 2003-04.

Local Government: Pensions

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the participation rate was for local government pension schemes in each pay band in each year from 2006 to 2010.

Bob Neill: The information requested is not held centrally.

Parishes: Expenditure

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total expenditure of civil parishes in (a) Teesside, (b) the North East and (c) England was between May 2010 and May 2011; and what assessment he has made of the cost-effectiveness of such authorities.

Bob Neill: No data are held centrally on the expenditure of parishes.
	Details of the parish precepts levied in Teesside, the North East and England in 2011-12 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Parish precepts (£000) 
			 Teesside(1) 1,160 
			 North East 17,684 
			 England 367,348 
			 (1 )Teesside consists of the unitary authorities of Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar & Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees. 
		
	
	The data were collected on the Budget Requirement (BR1) forms submitted annually by all billing authorities in England.
	It is for each parish council to put in place arrangements to secure value for money, for which they are accountable to their own local electorate. Government make no assessment of the cost-effectiveness of parish councils.

Planning Permission

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  when his Department plans to respond to its issues paper consultation on change of use in the planning system;
	(2)  how many responses his Department received to its issues paper consultation on change of use in the planning system.

Bob Neill: The Issues Paper was not a formal consultation and did not contain any firm Government proposals. Its purpose was to stimulate debate and encourage all those with an interest to put forward their thoughts and ideas on how change of use should be handled in the planning system in the future.
	It was part of a wider call for evidence on this subject which also included discussions with key partners and other Government Departments.
	The views put forward in response to this call for evidence will help inform our decisions on how best to take forward policy development in this area in the future.

Sleeping Rough

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how his Department counts the number of rough sleepers; and how the counting method has changed since May 2010.

Grant Shapps: There were serious deficiencies with the rough sleeping counts undertaken by the last Administration, under-estimating the true level of rough sleeping. In September 2010 the Government overhauled the way local areas assess the number of people sleeping rough with the introduction of a more accurate assessment that provides a snap shot of the number of rough sleepers on a given night made up of improved street counts and robust estimates. This provides a national picture of rough sleeping with information from every local authority.
	The Government are committed to tackling rough sleeping and preventing homelessness. We have maintained the level of Homelessness Grant, with £400 million for local authorities and the voluntary sector over the next four years. A cross-departmental Ministerial Working Group has been set up to address the complex causes of homelessness and improve support for homeless people. We also recently announced £42.5 million for the Homelessness Change Programme which will provide in excess of 1,500 new and improved bed spaces to improve hostels for rough sleepers and ensure that those coming off the streets get the support they need.

Social Rented Housing

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of social housing units occupied by people earning over £100,000 a year.

Grant Shapps: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Warrington North (Helen Jones) on 26 October 2011, Official Report, column 256W.

Social Rented Housing

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his policy is on the level of rent that may be charged for a property purchased by (a) a local authority and (b) a housing association that was previously privately owned.

Grant Shapps: If a local authority or housing association property is covered by the existing social housing 'rent restructuring' policy we would expect a target rent to be charged in line with that policy. The policy is set out in 'A Guide to Social Rent Reforms' 2003 available on the Department for Communities and Local Government's website at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/pdf/139187.pdf

Sustainable Development

Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he proposes that the presumption in favour of sustainable development will apply where a local authority has in place a local community plan.

Bob Neill: holding answer 8 September 2011
	The presumption in favour of sustainable development, set out in the draft National Planning Policy Framework, would reinforce the role of the statutory development plan for an area, including any neighbourhood plans made once the relevant provisions in the Localism Bill come into force. The presumption indicates that proposals in line with those plans should expect to be swiftly approved.

Wind Power

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  whether he plans to take into account differences between planning applications for domestic and non-domestic wind turbines in setting the noise limit for the non-domestic general permitted development order;
	(2)  if he will assess the consequences of setting the noise limit threshold for non-domestic wind turbines below 45 decibels for (a) investment and (b) the number of suitable wind turbine sites.

Bob Neill: The Government are committed to supporting the uptake of renewable energy and low carbon technologies. We have recently announced that permitted development rights for installations of wind turbines on domestic properties in England will be introduced on 1 December 2011. We are currently reviewing the scope for permitted development rights for microgeneration installations on non domestic premises—taking account of impacts, including noise. We will announce our intentions for England in due course. Planning in Scotland is a devolved matter.

TREASURY

Carer’s Allowance

Ian Austin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to the length of the carer's allowance claim form.

Maria Miller: I have been asked to reply.
	The carer’s allowance claim form is currently 28 pages long and it collects essential information in order to determine a carer’s allowance claim. It is reviewed regularly in order to ensure it is appropriate and relevant.

Charities

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what grants his Department made to charitable organisations in each of the last five years.

Chloe Smith: The Treasury has not issued any grants to charitable organisations in the last five years.

Loans: Republic of Ireland

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2011, Official Report, columns 572-3W, on loans: Republic of Ireland, 
	(1)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the notification he gave to his Irish counterpart;
	(2)  whether the reduced interest rate will apply to the first tranche of the loan disbursed on 14 October 2011; and whether the reduced rate will be backdated;
	(3)  for what reason the reduction in the European Financial Stability Facility interest rate enabled the UK to cut the interest rate to its loan to Ireland;
	(4)  whether the change in the risk of Irish default since January 2011 is a criterion in deciding the revised interest rate.

Mark Hoban: Following the 21 July 2011 agreement by euro area member states to reduce the interest rates applied to loans from the euro area-only European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), on 22 July telephoned the Irish Finance Minister, Michael Noonan, to notify him of the Chancellor's decision in principle to lower the interest rate on the UK's bilateral loan. As Parliament was in recess, the Chancellor wrote to the Chairs of the Public Accounts Committee and the Treasury Select Committee the same day, to notify them of his decision in principle. In view of the bipartisan support for the loan to Ireland, the letters were copied to the Shadow Chancellor.
	The Chancellor took the view that, until this point, the UK had been unable to lower the interest rate on its loan to Ireland without effectively subsidising the higher interest rates applicable to the EFSF. Changing the rate now ensures that all of the benefit goes to Ireland and not to higher interest rates paid to euro area governments.
	The new interest rate is yet to be agreed. In the course of that process, the Government will take into account all relevant criteria, including the need to ensure value for money for the taxpayer. The Government will still be covering the cost of its borrowing. The lower rate will be applied retrospectively to those tranches of the loan that have already been disbursed, including that disbursed on 14 October.

Metals: Theft

John Spellar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the economy of disruption consequent on metal theft.

Chloe Smith: The Treasury has made no direct assessment of the costs. The true cost of metal theft is difficult to ascertain, However third party organisations have estimated costs ranging from £220 million to £770 million a year.

Public Expenditure

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the Statement of 1 November 2011, on gang-related violence, what the Barnett Formula consequentials are for (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland.

Danny Alexander: Contributions towards tackling the key problems highlighted in the report on gang and youth violence are being funded from within existing Departments' provision and therefore do not attract any Barnett consequentials.

Public Sector: Pensions

Dominic Raab: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what additional cost to the public purse in cash terms will arise from the increase in accrual rates for public sector pensions announced on 2 November 2011.

Danny Alexander: holding answer 8 November 2011
	On 2 November 2011 I announced an increase in the accrual rate in the Government's preferred scheme design for public service pension reform, from 1/65ths to 1/60ths. This is an 8% cost increase.

Revenue and Customs

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many HM Revenue and Customs offices there were in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland in each year since 1997; and how many staff there were at each such office in each such year.

David Gauke: Information relating to the number of HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) office buildings within England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland prior to April 2001 can be identified only at disproportionate cost.
	The number of office buildings in HMRC and its predecessor Departments (HM Customs and Excise and Inland Revenue) for each year since 2001 and split by the constituent parts of the United Kingdom is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 As at 1 April each year England Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Total office buildings 
			 2001 584 28 73 23 708 
			 2002 571 28 71 25 695 
			 2003 541 27 69 25 662 
			 2004 526 27 66 24 643 
			 2005 505 27 62 23 617 
			 2006 483 27 61 23 594 
			 2007 465 25 60 21 571 
			 2008 442 25 59 19 545 
			 2009 426 25 57 19 527 
			 2010 357 22 51 16 446 
		
	
	
		
			 2011 395 25 53 14 487 
		
	
	Information relating to the number of staff within each individual HMRC office building from 1997 to 2011 can be identified only at disproportionate cost.
	The number of staff in HMRC and its predecessor Departments in England, Wales Scotland and Northern Ireland for each year since 2000 is shown in the following table. The office address data for 1997 to 1999 is incomplete and, as a result, these years have been excluded from the breakdown by country.
	
		
			  England Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Oversea  s  /  Homeworkers Total headcount 
			 1 April       
			 1997 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 77,824 
			 1998 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 78,278 
			 1999 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 85,358 
			 2000 75,772 4,556 7,886 2,078 91 90,383 
			 2001 76,806 4,680 7,920 2,165 108 91,679 
			 2002 78,054 4,552 8,146 2,161 263 93,176 
			 2003 83,996 5,386 9,863 2,529 136 101,910 
			 2004 87,209 5,287 10,461 2,675 378 106,010 
			 2005 85,928 5,005 10,711 2,693 337 104,674 
			 2006 81,855 4,860 11,415 2,513 95 100,738 
			 2007 77,264 4,872 11,464 2,480 431 96,511 
			 2008 72,619 4,523 11,018 2,364 437 90,961 
			 2009 70,676 4,525 11,160 2,257 257 88,875 
			 31 March       
			 2010 61,767 4,139 10,031 2,089 31 78,057 
			 2011 58,580 3,888 9,860 2,012 41 74,381

Tax Avoidance

David Anderson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to prevent FTSE 100 companies from avoiding taxation through the use of overseas tax havens.

David Gauke: The Government are working to ensure that the UK is a good place to do business. But being open for business does not mean being open to tax avoidance, and we have set out a strategic approach to address avoidance. This is supported by HMRC's anti-avoidance strategy which puts the emphasis on prevention of avoidance through robust legislation and deterrence, backed up by accurate detection and robust action where avoidance does occur.
	The Controlled Foreign Company (CFC) rules prevent multinational companies artificially diverting profits from the UK to low tax territories. The Government are introducing a modernised CFC regime which will prevent artificial diversion of UK profits while reflecting changes to the way in which businesses operate in a global economy.
	In relation to other HMRC activities within the anti-avoidance strategy to address the use of tax havens, I also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 3 November 2011, Official Report, column 736W.

VAT: Metals

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider the merits of instructing HM Revenue and Customs to carry out co-ordinated checks on scrap metal merchants to check (a) any irregularities in cash payments, (b) value added tax registrations and (c) the reconciliation of the quantity of metal reprocessed by a merchant with the sum remitted in value added tax.

David Gauke: Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) carries out the types of checks suggested in the question as part of its regular programme of activity to address tax non-compliance across all trade sectors including the scrap metal industry.
	On 7 November HMRC launched a taskforce in Scotland to specifically address businesses indicating a high risk of tax evasion within this trade sector. HMRC will be visiting around 250 scrap merchants in a joint operation with British Transport police and local police forces. The results from this taskforce will help inform HMRC's future decisions on resource deployment across the UK as a whole in respect to scrap metal merchants and the industry supply chain.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Bell Pottinger Group

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether (a) Ministers, (b) officials and (c) political advisers in his Department have met representatives of (i) Bell Pottinger Group or (ii) each of its subsidiaries in the last five years; on what dates any such meetings took place; and what was discussed.

Charles Hendry: Details of meetings between DECC Ministers and external organisations are published quarterly on the Department's website.
	The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Charities

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what grants his Department made to charitable organisations in each of the last five years.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was established in October 2008. For 2008-09, records of DECC's grants are held on the accounting systems of predecessor Departments (the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills). They can only be retrieved and analysed at disproportionate cost.
	The value of grants paid directly by DECC to the voluntary and community sector (VCS) as a whole from 2009-10 onwards are shown in the following table. DECC's accounting system does not specifically identify registered charities. Most of these grants were made paid through the low carbon buildings programme which was scaled back in 2010-11 and closed on 31 March 2011. This reflects a policy decision to promote energy efficiency and low carbon technologies through market mechanisms such as levies on energy bills.
	In addition, charities are free to apply for grant schemes funded by DECC and run by DECC's delivery partners such as the Carbon Trust. Details of DECC funded grants paid by third parties can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 Period Amount (£ million) 
			 2009-10 17.1 
			 2010-11 6.2 
			 1 April to 30 June 2011 1.0 
			 Total 24.2

Departmental Telephone Services

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department has allocated to each telephone helpline funded by his Department in 2011-12; what the purpose is of each such helpline; and how many calls each helpline received in each of the last five years.

Gregory Barker: The following table sets out the telephone lines funded by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, their purpose and where readily identifiable, their cost and number of calls handled.
	
		
			 Helpline Costs 2011-12 Purpose Number of calls 
			 DECC Enquiry Line and night duty office £89,000 Provides an initial point of telephone contact for all public enquiries, at any time of day, routing these to the appropriate part of the Department. BIS Enquiry Unit—energy related calls: January 2009 to December 2009 = 8,700 January 2010 to December 2010 = 11,465 January 2011 to date = 9,614 
			    BIS Night Duty Calls: April 2009 to March 2009 = 432 April 2010 to March 2010 = 391 April 2011 to date = 254 
			    Climate change related calls—Global Crossing: August to December 2010 = 7,500 January to October 2011 = 10,979 
			     
			 DEFRA Shared Services Directorate HR helpline £58,000 HR helpline for staff run by the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs who provide payroll services to DECC. 1 November 2010 to 31 October 2011 = 2,688 Prior to November 2010, HR services were provided by both DEFRA and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Calls relating to DECC staff can only be disaggregated from the host department at disproportionate cost. 
			     
			 National Concessionary Fuel Office (NCFO) enquiry line No disaggregated figure available—the helpline is paid for as part of the overall NCFO service Provides an enquiry service for former British Coal employees regarding their entitlements (where eligible) to benefit under the National Concessionary Fuel Scheme. 2006-07 = 65,062 2007-08 = 52,500 2008-09 = 47,216 2009-10 = 44,051 2010-11 = 38,722 
			     
			 Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP) help-lines No designated funding as it was contained in the general LCBP budget Operated until July 2011. Fielded general enquiries, such as the possibility of exchanging LCBP grants for Feed-In Tariffs. No data available. The scheme has closed and the programme team has disbanded. 
			     
		
	
	
		
			 Confidential employee helpline No disaggregated figure available—the helpline is paid for as part of a wider overall service Provides a telephone and e-mail helpline related to personal issues including managing stress, personal work problems, counselling, bereavement, family issues and career discussions as part of a wider Employee Assistance Scheme. Between 1 March 2011 to 30 September 2011 received 23 calls from DECC staff. Prior to that date, DECC used a contract held by BIS. Calls relating to DECC staff can be disaggregated from the host department only at disproportionate cost. 
			     
			 Combined Heat and Power helpline £96,000 Provides e-mail, electronic and telephone support and guidance to industry on technical development and quality assurance of Combined Heat and Power projects. 2006-07 = 909,608 2007-08 = 1,171,506 2008-09 = 1,301,250 2009-10 = 1,283,804 2010-11 = 992,595 2011 to date = 282,949 
			     
			 Oil and Gas Portal helpdesk c.£125,000 for regulatory issues plus c.£60,000 for environmental issues Provides helpdesk and industry support for the Portal, which conducts all oil and gas regulatory business processes electronically, including environmental aspects. 2011 to date = 2,107(1, 2) 2010 = 3,255(1, 2) 2009 = 3,758(1, 2) 2008 = 3,071(1, 2) 2007 = 3,003(1, 2) 
			 Electricity Portal helpdesk c.£90,000 Provides helpdesk and industry support for the Portal, which issues consents for overhead lines, compulsory purchases —(1, 2) 
			     
			 Energie Helpline No disaggregated figure available—the helpline is paid for as part of the overall Energie service Provides support and advice to UK companies and research organisations bidding for EU energy technology research, development and demonstration funding. Average of 140 direct telephone calls per year as a part of a much wider service. 
			     
			 Warm Front helpline No disaggregated figure available—the helpline is paid for as part of the overall Warm Front service Provides advice about all aspects of the Warm Front scheme. 2011 to date = 282,949 2010 = 992,595 2009 = 1,283,804 2008 = 1,301,250 2007 = 1,171,506 
			 (1) Indicates brace. (2 )Covering oil and gas and electricity.

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  how many parliamentary questions for written answer on a named day by his Department were answered (a) on time, (b) five days late, (c) 10 days late, (d) 20 days late and (e) over 30 days late in each month since May 2010;
	(2)  how many parliamentary questions for (a) ordinary written answer and (b) written answer on a named day by his Department have remained unanswered for a period of two months since May 2010;
	(3)  whether draft answers to parliamentary questions prepared by officials in his Department are cleared by special advisers (a) before and (b) after the relevant Minister.

Gregory Barker: The information requested is as follows:
	Special advisers have the opportunity to comment on draft answers. Ministers always have the final sign off and approval of draft answers.
	
		
			  Written parliamentary questions Named day questions 
			  Total  number  of questions On time Total  number  of questions On time 
			 2010     
			 May 15 12 2 0 
			 June 111 74 17 11 
			 July 239 178 19 11 
			 August 3 3 0 0 
			 September 82 59 19 11 
			 October 152 130 12 10 
			 November 187 144 31 20 
			 December 137 116 19 14 
			      
			 2011     
			 January 187 172 42 40 
			 February 178 148 29 27 
			 March 233 202 67 58 
			 April 92 88 32 30 
			 May 118 111 37 37 
			 June 247 201 25 24 
			 July 199 191 30 27 
			 August 82 82 1 1 
		
	
	
		
			 September 84 78 17 17 
			 October 182 147 62 44 
		
	
	The Department does not hold this information in the format requested and this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The Government have committed to providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance on a sessional basis and will provide full information to the Committee at the end of the Session. Statistics relating to Government Departments’ performance for the 2009-10 parliamentary Session were previously provided to the committee and are available on the Parliament website.
	Since May 2010, the Department has not on any occasion had any parliamentary questions remain unanswered beyond 20 sitting days.

Electricity Generation

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effect of phantom megawatts on the security of the national electricity supply;
	(2)  what steps his Department has taken to audit the use of publicly-owned generators by short-term operating reserve aggregators;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) cost of phantom megawatts purchased by National Grid in the last year; and what assessment he has made of the effect of such purchases on the electricity prices paid by consumers in the last year.

Charles Hendry: The system operator, National Grid, procures balancing services in order to balance demand and supply and to ensure the security and quality of electricity supply across the GB transmission system. These balancing services include Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR).
	The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Eastleigh (Chris Huhne), has not assessed, audited or monitored the performance of STOR providers, or the participation of publicly-owned generators in STOR. National Grid has contracts, monitoring processes and penalties in place to minimise the risk of paying for capacity that cannot deliver when required. In addition Ofgem places commercial incentives on National Grid to ensure it balances the system efficiently and provides value for consumers, which they assess regularly.

Feed-in Tariffs: Business

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  how many businesses have submitted a request for accreditation for a feed-in tariff licence since April 2010;
	(2)  if he will estimate the number of firms submitting a request for accreditation for a feed-in tariff licence in each year between 2010 and 2015.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 8 November 2011
	Since the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) scheme started in April 2010, 20 licensed electricity suppliers have been registered as FITs suppliers.
	In the same period, 3,226 installation companies have been certificated to install microgeneration equipment that could be eligible for FITs under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS). Of these, 3,057 are companies which install solar photovoltaics (PV).
	It is not possible to provide estimates for future years.

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many (a) households and (b) companies are receiving the feed-in tariff.

Gregory Barker: On 8 November 2011, the Ofgem Central FIT Register showed a total of 96,347 installations registered for FITs are classified as domestic across all technologies. There are 1,688 installations registered for FITs which are classified as commercial and industrial installations across all technologies.

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's budget for the feed-in tariff scheme is.

Gregory Barker: The Department spending envelope for the Feed-in Tariff (FITs) scheme is:
	
		
			  FITs (£ million) 
			 2011-12 80 
			 2012-13 161 
			 2013-14 269 
			 2014-15 357 
		
	
	This information is published on our website in a question and answer document which details the spending envelope for all the DECC levies-funded policies and can be viewed at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/funding-support/fuel-poverty/3290-control-fwork-decc-levyfunded-spending.pdf

Solar Power

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate his Department has made of the contribution of the solar industry to gross domestic product.

Mark Prisk: I have been asked to reply.
	HM Government have made no estimates of solar industry contribution to gross domestic product.
	However, independent research commissioned by the Department of Business Innovation and Skills estimates that photovoltaic renewable energy (i.e. solar power) together with its supply chain resulted in nearly £5 billion of sales in 2009-10, employing 39,000 across 2,000 businesses.

Solar Power

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will assess the commercial viability of the solar panel industry.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 8 November 2011
	The impact assessment accompanying the Government's consultation on feed-in tariffs (FITs) for solar photovoltaics (PV) estimates that new solar PV installations will continue to come forward under the proposed changes to FITs for solar PV. The number of installations is expected to be around 30,000 per year for the rest of the spending review period.

Solar Power

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to paragraph 34 of his Department's consultation on Comprehensive Review Phase 1—Tariffs for Solar PV, published on 31 October 2011, whether his Department has made an estimate of the cost of (a) the solar panels and (b) the installation process for solar PV.

Gregory Barker: The impact assessment supporting the Government's consultation on feed-in tariffs for solar photovoltaics (PV) sets out estimates of PV installation costs for different sizes of installations. These estimates reflect both the costs of solar panels and costs of the installation process. They are based on a report from Cambridge Economic Policy Associates and Parsons Brinckerhoff which was published alongside the impact assessment and is available at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/consultation/fits-comp-review-p1/3365-updates-to-fits-model-doc.pdf

Solar Power

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the effect of reducing feed-in-tariff levels for solar electricity on (a) future levels of solar power installation and (b) the likelihood of achieving the target to generate 20 per cent. of electricity from renewable sources by 2020.

Gregory Barker: The impact assessment supporting the Government's consultation on proposed changes to FITs for solar PV estimates that, by 2020, there will be around 1 to 2 TWh generation from solar PV under central growth assumptions.
	The UK is committed to meeting its 15% renewable energy target for 2020. The UK Renewable Energy Roadmap set out our understanding of actual and potential deployment and the action required to help the UK meet the target in a cost effective and sustainable way. The roadmap set out that solar photovoltaics (PV) would have a relatively limited role in cost-effective delivery of the overall target.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households he expects to be lifted out of fuel poverty as a result of the Warm Homes Discount Scheme.

Gregory Barker: Estimates of the impact of the Warm Home Discount Scheme on fuel poverty were published in the relevant impact assessment in February 2011:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/Consultations/warm-home-discount/1308-warm-home-disc-impact-assessment.pdf
	where it was estimated that in 2011-12 the net impact of the Warm Home Discount will be a reduction in fuel poverty of around 88,000 households, rising to around 98,000 households in 2014-15.

CABINET OFFICE

Emergencies

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what bodies have replaced regional resilience teams in the Government offices for the regions.

Bob Neill: I have been asked to reply.
	I am the Minister for Fire and Resilience. Following the closure of the Government offices for the regions on 31 March 2011, the functions of the former regional resilience teams transferred to the Resilience and Emergencies Division in my Department. The division comprises 53 FTE staff (which can be augmented by volunteers from elsewhere in the Department when necessary). This is approximately 20% fewer staff than employed in the former regional resilience teams, but provides the same Government support to local responders in emergency preparedness and response (the ‘regional response capability’), as well as continuing to discharge the Department's lead Government Department responsibilities. This includes the site clearance workstream. It is not possible to apportion staff time to individual workstreams as at any one time resilience advisers will be contributing to the full range of workstreams in the Capabilities programme according to the risks faced in a given locality. There is no budgetary provision for specific workstreams.

HEALTH

Bowel Cancer: Drugs

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many applications were approved for (a) first line and (b) second line treatment of bowel cancer through the use of Avastin in each strategic health authority area in each of the last three years; and at what cost per treatment;
	(2)  what guidance he has issued on the prescription of Avastin in treating bowel cancer;
	(3)  what the availability is of Avastin for treating bowel cancer in each strategic health authority area.

Simon Burns: The Department has not issued any guidance on the prescription of Avastin (bevacizumab) for the treatment of bowel (colorectal) cancer.
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has published or is developing technology appraisal guidance on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of Avastin for a number of its licensed indications and more information is available on NICE’s website at:
	www.nice.org.uk
	NICE does not recommend Avastin for the treatment of colorectal cancer.
	In the absence of a positive NICE appraisal on a drug, it is for local primary care trusts (PCTs) to make funding decisions based on an assessment of the available, evidence. Information on individual PCT funding decisions is not collected centrally.
	Where a cancer drug is not routinely funded by a PCT, patients may be able to access the drug through the Cancer Drugs Fund.
	Information on the funding of Avastin (bevacizumab) in each strategic health authority (SHA) under the interim cancer drugs funding arrangements in 2010-11 (from October 2010 to February 2011(1)) and under the Cancer Drugs Fund in 2011-12 (to September 2011) is shown in the table. This does not include any use of Avastin that has been funded locally by PCTs.
	The Department does not hold information on the specific indications for which drugs have been funded; or the cost per treatment.
	(1) A breakdown of patient numbers and spend by SHA by drug for March 2011 is not available.
	
		
			  Number of patients  (1) Spend (£000) 
			 Strategic health authority (SHA) 2010-11 October   to   February 2011-12 April to   September 2010-11 October   to   February 2011-12 April to   September 
			 North-east 127 263 240 1,683 
			 North-west 45 90 275 700 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 18 97 57 199 
			 East midlands 50 159 83 240 
			 West midlands 97 305 848 2,646 
			 East of England 65 137 359 1,692 
			 London 85 100 781 1,328 
			 South-east coast 63 168 406 1,175 
			 South central 5 68 29 72 
			 South-west 28 119 132 1,000 
			 (1) Some individual patients may be double counted where a patient has received more than one drug treatment Source: Information supplied to the Department of Health by SHAs

Cardiovascular System: Diseases

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been diagnosed with a vascular disease in each year since 2001 in each local authority area.

Simon Burns: This information is not available in the format requested. A table of information detailing the number of finished consultant episodes where a primary or secondary diagnosis of “vascular disease” has been recorded, for the required years, has been placed in the Library.
	The information provided is by primary care trust of residence as the required information is not available by local authority area.

Charities

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what grants his Department made to charitable organisations in each of the last five years.

Paul Burstow: Information on all grants that the Department has made to charitable organisations is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The Department is currently working to address this, and systems are being put in place to capture the information for future years.
	It is possible to provide partial information based on the Department's voluntary sector grants budget, which provides grants to charitable organisations. The total spend for each of the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2006-07 23,764,297 
			 2007-08 25,272,919 
			 2008-09 24,145,002 
			 2009-10 24,875,825 
			 2010-11 25,428,000 
		
	
	Information on how this funding has been divided across the different grant funding schemes has been placed in the Library.

Departmental Manpower

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who the lead Minister in his Department is for the (a) infectious diseases: human, (b) mass casualties and (c) health services workstream of the Capabilities programme.

Simon Burns: All of these three workstreams of the UK Capabilities programme fall within the remit of the Under-Secretary of State for Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Guildford (Anne Milton).

Departmental Manpower

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget was for the (a) infectious diseases: human, (b) mass casualties and (c) health services workstream of the Capabilities programme in each year since 2005; and what the budget will be during the comprehensive spending review period.

Simon Burns: There is no allocated programme budget for the infectious diseases workstream of the Capabilities programme. The Department did not have a separate programme budget for the mass casualties or health services workstreams prior to April 2008. However, the total departmental revenue programme funding budgets for the mass casualties and health services workstreams since 2008-09 and for the current and next financial years are as follows:
	
		
			 £ 
			  2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Mass casualties 230,000 245,000 220,000 146,000 106,000 
			 Health services 899,900 660,480 322,250 0 0 
		
	
	From 2011-12 onwards, the Department's budgets for the mass casualties and health services workstreams include separate delivery budgets within NHS Finance, Performance and Operations. Programme funding for both sets of budgets has not yet been allocated for the remainder of the comprehensive spending review period beyond 2012-13.
	However, since the vast majority of emergency preparedness and civil resilience work is funded from within NHS organisations' own budgets, the level of departmental programme funding is not necessarily indicative of the extent of work being undertaken more widely within the health sector.

Drinks: Regulation

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to measure the effectiveness of the Portman Group in regulating drinks industry marketing and packaging.

Simon Burns: We expect the alcohol industry to demonstrate an ethical and responsible approach towards its customers and wider society. The Portman Group is a longstanding initiative of alcoholic drinks producing companies, which has similar aims. The Public Health Responsibility Deal challenges industry to go further.
	The Responsibility Deal Alcohol Network has developed a collective pledge to commit to further action on advertising and marketing, including the development of a new sponsorship code requiring the promotion of responsible drinking. The Portman Group's current consultation on its code of practice on the marketing of alcoholic drinks relates to this pledge.

General Practitioners: Essex

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what payments the Mid Essex Primary Care Trust made to each general practice in its area in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  what the total payment per GP made by the Mid Essex Primary Care Trust was to each general practice in its area in the last year for which figures are available;
	(3)  what the total payment per patient made by the Mid Essex Primary Care Trust was to each general practice in its area in the last year for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: The information requested is not collected centrally. My hon. Friend may wish to contact Mid Essex Primary Care Trust directly.

General Practitioners: Finance

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average total payment made to general practices in England was in the last year for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: Information on the latest total spend of general practitioner practices in England is reported by the Information Centre for health and social care and is contained in their “Investment in General Practice 2006/07 to 2010/11 England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland” report. This publication has been placed in the Library.
	In England in 2010-11, total payments to primary medical care contractors (in the main general practice contractors) amounted to £8.349 billion.

General Practitioners: Finance

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average total payment per patient made to general practices in England was in the last year for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: The total payment per patient made to general practices in England in 2010-11 was £151.75.

Health Services

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he is considering mechanisms to ensure that hospitals are provided with financial incentives to participate in arrangements for integrated care for people (a) aged over 75 years, (b) with diabetes, (c) injecting drug users and (d) other age groups and conditions that would benefit from an integrated care model to facilitate better patient care and prevent avoidable hospital admissions.

Simon Burns: The Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention Long Term Conditions Workstream is developing a “year of care” funding model for people with long-term conditions to dramatically improve quality of care for patients with long-term conditions that will actively encourage integration of health and care services. This model will look to create incentives for organisations to manage people's care jointly and seamlessly. It will look to ensure investment in services that will keep them out of accident and emergency and more effectively manage patients in the community to help deliver better health outcomes at reduced costs, instead of simply passing costs and responsibility for people with complex health problems around the system.

Health Services

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) organisational support, (b) finance, (c) evaluation processes and (d) other mechanisms he is putting in place to encourage the development of integrated care between existing NHS providers, GPs, social services and third sector agencies; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The proposals we have outlined in the Health and Social Care Bill place a much firmer emphasis on. the importance of integration—better collaboration, partnership working and integration across social care and the national health service at all levels.
	The NHS Commissioning Board, Clinical Commissioning Groups, health and wellbeing boards as well as the regulators Monitor and the Care Quality Commission will all have enhanced duties to encourage integration and work across health and social care. Health and wellbeing boards are a key element of our health and care reforms, and that is why we are putting mechanisms in place to encourage the development of integrated care through the support of National Learning Networks.
	Integration is a key focus of the adult social care engagement exercise: 'Caring for our Future', and it is working in partnership with the Future Forum to further develop how can we take advantage of the health and social care modernisation programme to ensure services are better integrated around people's needs.
	We have made financial support available to back this up. The spending review set out substantial additional funding, up to £1 billion by 2014-15 within the NHS, to specifically benefit social care and improve health outcomes.
	The NHS Operating Framework for 2011-12 clearly reiterated the importance of partnership working between health and local government organisations in particular working together to achieve efficiencies and deliver value for money from the public purse.

Health Services: North West

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the recent review of vascular services in the North West, how many arterial centres are being proposed for (a) Merseyside and Cheshire and (b) Greater Manchester.

Simon Burns: Vascular services across the national health service in England are being reviewed locally. This is in response to the growing clinical evidence base that provides a strong case for providing vascular surgery services in fewer more specialised centres or networks to achieve optimal patient outcomes.
	Decisions about the provision of local health services, including vascular services, are a matter for the local NHS.
	The Cheshire and Merseyside Vascular Review Project board is leading a review of vascular surgery services in Cheshire and Merseyside which will be subject to public consultation in due course.

Malnutrition

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration his Department has given to establishing a Malnutrition Commission to reduce the level of malnutrition in the UK.

Paul Burstow: The Department has no plans to establish a Malnutrition Commission. The Dignity in Care Commission was established as a joint initiative by the NHS Confederation, Age UK and the Local Government Group and I have invited Age UK to meet me to discuss how malnutrition could form part of the Commission's work and how we can address the policy issue more widely.

NHS: Land

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 18 October 2011, Official Report, column 836W, on NHS land, what discussions his Department has had with private health care providers on the potential use of NHS land, building and facilities since May 2010.

Simon Burns: Departmental officials have not had any discussions, since May 2010, with any private health care providers in respect of the potential use of national health service land, buildings and facilities.

NHS: Private Patients

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have had with bodies and organisations (i) in the UK and (ii) abroad on his proposed increase in the number of non-European economic area overseas private patients treated in NHS hospitals.

Simon Burns: There have been no formal discussions between Ministers and departmental officials with bodies and organisations in the United Kingdom and abroad regarding increasing the number of overseas private patients receiving treatment in national health service hospitals. Furthermore, there is no proposal to increase the number of non-European economic area overseas patients treated in NHS hospitals.
	However, there is a proposal in the Health and Social Care Bill to remove the private patient cap. The intention behind the removal of the private patient cap is not to increase the number of private patients receiving treatment in NHS hospitals but to allow NHS foundation trusts to develop new services that deliver better care for patients.

NHS: Property

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether there are any plans by primary care trusts and strategic health authority clusters to sell NHS (a) property and (b) assets to non-NHS organisations; and what the property and assets are which they propose to sell.

Simon Burns: The Department is not aware of any plans by primary care trusts (PCTs) and strategic health authority clusters to sell national health service property and assets to non-NHS organisations.
	It is not the Department's policy to sell parts of the NHS estate where services are provided to patients. Current NHS best practice confirms that estate should only be offered to independent organisations where it is surplus to NHS or other public sector requirements, and should normally be sold by auction or competitive tendering.
	Subject to the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill through Parliament, PCTs will be abolished in April 2013.
	The Department announced on 4 August 2011, that aspirant community foundation trusts, other NHS trusts, and foundation trusts are to be given the opportunity to acquire part(s) of the PCT estate deemed “service critical clinical infrastructure”. A copy of the relevant guidance, ‘PCT Estate: future ownership and management of estate in the ownership of Primary Care Trusts in England’, has been placed in the Library and is available on the Department's website:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_129008
	PCTs have been working with NHS providers to agree the portfolio of properties that will transfer to them. Proposed lists are with the Department for review and approval by 15 December 2011. It is expected that actual transfers of estate will commence in 2012.
	PCTs will retain those parts of the estate not transferred to NHS providers, for the time being. An announcement and further guidance relating to this part of the estate will be issued in due course.
	Appendix B of the guidance sets out the type of property that will typically be retained by the PCT. This includes properties, which are surplus, unutilised or part of a development programme.

Patients: Transport

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued regarding the provision of non-emergency transport between NHS hospitals since 2001.

Simon Burns: Primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for ensuring that there is provision of ambulance services (which could include patient transport services), to such extent as they consider necessary to meet all reasonable requirements. It is for the local national health service to decide who provides non-emergency patient transport services for eligible patients in their area.
	The Department issued a guidance document ‘Eligibility Criteria for Patient Transport Services (PTS)’ on best practice relating to patient transport services in 2007. A copy has been placed in the Library. The guidance sets out in detail the eligibility criteria for use of that service. Eligibility is based upon medical need. The document supersedes ‘Ambulance and other patient transport services—operation, use and performance standards’ which was published in 1991.

Prescription Drugs: Costs

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost to the NHS of the over-prescription of drugs in (a) England, (b) the West Midlands, (c) South Staffordshire Primary Care Trust and (d) Tamworth.

Simon Burns: The Department does not routinely collect data on the annual value of unused prescription medicines for England as a whole or in part.
	We commissioned the York Health Economics Consortium and the School of Pharmacy at the University of London to carry out research to determine the scale, causes and costs of waste medicines in England. The report, “Evaluation of the Scale, Causes and Costs of Waste Medicines”, was published by the researchers on 23 November 2010. The report estimated the gross annual cost of unused prescription medicines in national health service primary and community care in 2009 to be in the region of £300 million, of which £150 million was avoidable waste. There are many causes for medicines wastage. Over prescribing of medicines is just one of those causes.

Prostate Cancer: Health Services

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has made on establishing a topic expert group to create a Quality Standard for prostate cancer; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The information requested is not held by the Department. I have asked the chief executive of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to write to the hon. Member with this information. A copy of this letter will be placed in the Library.

Sexual and Alcohol-related Violence

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had with other Government Departments on the provision of cross-departmental services to provide assistance to those suffering from sexual and alcohol-related violence.

Anne Milton: The Department is committed to ending violence against women and girls and works closely with other Government Departments on this agenda. Departmental Ministers meet with others from across Government as part of the Inter-Ministerial Group on Violence against Women and Girls. Departmental officials work closely with other Government Departments on taking forward the actions in the Violence Against Women and Girls action plan, and are represented on cross-Government groups on sexual violence, as well as on more specific related issues such as trafficking, child sexual exploitation, forced marriage and female genital mutilation. For example, the Department is currently working closely with the Home Office on considering the transfer of commissioning responsibilities for Sexual Assault Referral Centres from the police to the national health service.
	The Government will publish their alcohol strategy document later this year. The strategy document will address the full range of harm from alcohol, including alcohol-related violence. Departmental officials regularly discuss these issues with our colleagues in the Government and Partners Alcohol Working Group.

Skin Cancer: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the availability of ipilimumab (Yervoy) for people with advanced melanoma.

Simon Burns: We have made no such assessment. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is currently appraising the use of Yervoy (ipilimumab) for the treatment of previously treated unresectable stage III or IV malignant melanoma and has not yet issued final guidance to the national health service.
	In the absence of final NICE guidance on a drug, it is for local primary care trusts (PCTs) to make, funding decisions based on an assessment of the available evidence. Where a cancer drug is not routinely funded by a PCT, patients may be able to access the drug through the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Skin Cancer: Young People

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department has provided for skin cancer prevention programmes amongst young people in the last 10 years.

Simon Burns: Sunsmart is the national skin cancer prevention run by Cancer Research UK. Confirmed funding for Sunsmart from the Department of Health, England, for the period 2004-05 onwards is provided in the following table (along with information regarding an Innovation, Excellence and Strategic Development Grant which also aims to influence young people to take action to prevent melanoma skin cancer). Prior to that time there are no central records of grant payments made for skin cancer prevention programmes among young people, and this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 £ 
			  Sunsmart Testing innovative approaches to influence young people to take action to prevent melanoma and men from low socioeconomic groups reporting with early stage melanoma (Innovation, Excellence and Strategic Development Grant) 
			 2004-05 72,000 — 
			 2005-06 145,000 — 
			 2006-07 150,000 — 
			 2007-08 104,000 — 
			 2008-09 110,000 — 
			 2009-10 615,000 — 
			 2010-11 500,000 150,000 
			 2011-12 (1)— 153,000 
			 (1) Decisions about possible allocation of funding to Sunsmart in 2011-12 have not yet been made. 
		
	
	The Department has also provided funding to support the Sunbeds (Regulation) Act which prohibits sunbed operators from allowing those under 18 years from using sunbeds in commercial premises.

Speech and Language Disorders

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure co-ordination between Public Health England, local authorities and the NHS on the early identification of speech language and communication needs following the implementation of his planned reforms to the NHS;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the potential effects of implementation of the provisions of the Health and Social Care Bill on people with speech language and communication needs; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: There has been no central assessment of the potential effects of implementation of the provisions of the Health and Social Care Bill specifically for people with speech, language and communications needs. The proposals in the Bill move the national health service towards a system that puts patients first, with local organisations responsible for assessing and responding to population needs and with a greater focus on health outcomes, improving choice and integrated service delivery.
	The Bill provides the basis for better collaboration, partnership working and integration across local government and the NHS at all levels. The drivers of integration in the modernised health and care system will be clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), the NHS Commissioning Board, Monitor and local government. CCGs and the NHS Commissioning Board Will both have new duties to promote integrated working by taking specific action to secure integration, where beneficial to patients. In addition, the Bill gives Health And Wellbeing Boards a duty to encourage health and social care commissioners to work together in an integrated manner to advance the health and well-being of their community, and to involve users and the public in doing this.

Speech and Language Disorders

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what means commissioning bodies will ensure that people with speech language and communication needs are identified and treated as a priority in the NHS; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Subject to the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill, general practitioners (GPs) will be given real responsibility through clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to ensure that commissioning decisions are underpinned by clinical insight and knowledge of local health care needs. GPs, in partnership with other local health care professionals such as therapists and community nurses, are best placed to understand the speech, language and communication health needs of local populations and how to work with their local populations to design services that meet those needs.
	In addition, CCGs will work with local authorities to develop a comprehensive analysis of health and social care needs in each local area, and to translate these into action through the joint health and well-being strategy and their own commissioning plans. Health and Wellbeing Boards will promote joined up commissioning that will support integrated provision of services across health and social care.

Vitamin D

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the prevalence of Vitamin D deficiency in the population;
	(2)  how many cases of rickets were recorded in England and Wales in each of the last 30 years;
	(3)  what steps he is taking to encourage (a) adults, (b) children and (c) pregnant women to ensure they have sufficient intake of vitamin D.

Simon Burns: The 2000-01 National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) of 19 to 64-year-olds found that around 15% of the adult population overall, and a quarter of the 19 to 24 age group, had a blood concentration of vitamin D which indicated that they were at risk of vitamin D deficiency.
	Preliminary results from the analysis of blood samples collected in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 NDNSs show that average blood concentrations of vitamin D for older children (11 to 18-year-olds) and adults (19 to 64-year-olds) were above the threshold that indicates a risk of vitamin D deficiency. It is not possible to extrapolate the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency from this data due to small numbers covered in the survey to date.
	The number of episodes of rickets per year for each year in the past 30 years is not available. Data from the Hospital Episode Statistics on the number of episodes of rickets per year from 1995-96 to 2010-11 are provided in the following table.
	
		
			 Number of finished consultant episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of rickets by year from 1995-96 to 2010-11 
			  Finished consultant episodes 
			 1995-96 183 
			 1996-97 201 
			 1997-98 147 
			 1998-99 173 
			 1999-2000 232 
			 2000-01 214 
			 2001-02 289 
			 2002-03 277 
			 2003-04 329 
			 2004-05 306 
			 2005-06 386 
			 2006-07 497 
			 2007-08 507 
			 2008-09 723 
			 2009-10 739 
			 2010-11 762 
		
	
	Reference should be made to the footnotes when interpreting the data provided(1,) ( ) (2,) ( ) (3)
	It is not possible to extrapolate the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency from this data due to small numbers covered in the survey to date.
	Most people should be able to get enough vitamin D from the action of summer sunlight on the skin. However there are some population groups who are at risk of having a low vitamin D status, including infants and young children, all pregnant and breastfeeding women, all people aged 65 and over, people with darker skins (especially those of South Asian and African-Caribbean origin), and people not exposed to sufficient sunlight (e.g. people whose clothing conceals them fully or those who are confined indoors). Vitamin D supplements are therefore recommended for these at risk groups.
	The Department recommends all pregnant and breastfeeding women and all children from six months to five years take a daily vitamin D supplement as a precautionary measure. The Department provides vitamin supplements that include vitamin D through its Healthy Start scheme to pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and young children from low-income families. We encourage primary care trusts (PCTs) to make these vitamins available to all women and young children.
	(1) A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. The number of episodes does not represent the number of different patients, as a person may be admitted on more than one occasion in any given year.
	(2) The number of episodes in which the patient had a (named) primary or secondary diagnosis indicates where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.
	(3) HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and PCTs in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage and changes in NHS practice.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Unmanned Air Vehicles

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the Watchkeeper 450 unmanned air system to be deployed and operational in Afghanistan.

Peter Luff: Watchkeeper is expected to deploy to Afghanistan in the first quarter of next year and is expected to deliver progressively increasing operational capability throughout 2012.

Ammunition: Storage

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what munitions are (a) tested, (b) modified and (c) stored at the munition facilities at (i) Crombie, (ii) Beith and (iii) Glen Douglas.

Nick Harvey: The Ministry of Defence does not currently modify or test munitions at the defence munitions sites at Crombie and Glen Douglas. Crombie holds a range of munitions including mines, small arms ammunition and pyrotechnics and aircraft canopies containing explosive components. Glen Douglas stores a wider range of general munitions, including shells. Beith undertakes the testing, modification and storage of complex weapons, including missiles and torpedoes.

Armed Forces: Coroners

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he plans to appoint a chief coroner to deal with cases involving members of the armed forces; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 7 November 2011
	The Ministry of Justice has responsibility for coronial matters, including the proposal to include the office of the Chief Coroner in Schedule 5 of the Public Bodies Bill, which will allow the majority of the Chief Coroner's key functions to be transferred to either the Lord Chief Justice, in respect of judicial functions, or the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke), for administrative functions. This will allow coroner services to be improved across the country, including for bereaved relatives of members of the armed forces. It will also allow the Lord Chief Justice to set mandatory training requirements for coroners and their officers, including training in respect of inquests involving members of the armed forces.
	The Government are clear that urgent reform is required to ensure that the coronial system offers a much better service to the bereaved families of service personnel. That is why we are ensuring that coroners conducting inquests involving members of the armed forces can access proper, specialist military training, and that inquests can be transferred to locations close to the homes of bereaved families. We are also introducing a new Charter to set out the clear, enforceable standards which everyone should expect at an inquest, and we are appointing a Minister, supported by representatives of bereaved families, to be in charge of driving and monitoring these much needed changes.
	Taken together these plans will continue the downward pressure on waiting times for inquests involving members of the armed forces, and will deliver on this Government's commitment to honour the memories of those brave servicemen and women who have laid down their lives for our country, and to care for the loved ones they have left behind.

Armed Forces: Pay

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  on how many occasions his Department has sought money from relatives of deceased service personnel since May 2010; and for what reasons in each case;
	(2)  how much has been collected by his Department in advanced wages from families of deceased service personnel since May 2010;
	(3)  whether his Department has received any complaints about the collection of wages of deceased service personnel since May 2010; and what the grounds were for any such complaints.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 3 November 2011
	We never ask families of those killed in service to pay money back. Our aim is always to ensure families receive the right amount of money as quickly as possible and we conduct a full reconciliation of their pay accounts as soon as we have all the information available to us.
	Consequently, while we do not collect any money from the families of deceased service personnel, we do adjust future payments to ensure families are paid all to which they are entitled. This includes payment for any outstanding annual leave.

Armed Forces: Pay

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the percentage increase was in (a) the rate of inflation and (b) service pay in (i) real and (ii) nominal terms between 2010 and 2011.

Andrew Robathan: In the year to 2010-11 UK general inflation, as measured by the latest published GDP deflator, was 2.8%. The defence inflation statistic measures average change in pay, and prices of goods and services, making up the defence budget, with quality and quantity held constant.
	The latest estimate of defence inflation for 2010-11, in nominal terms, is 4.2%.
	The latest estimate of defence inflation for 2010-11, in real terms, is 1.4%.
	The latest estimate of inflation in military basic and specialist pay for 2010-11, in nominal terms, is 2.8%.
	The latest estimate of inflation in military basic and specialist pay for 2010-11, in real terms, is 0.0%.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of how many further reductions there will be to the number of civilian jobs in the (a) Army, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Royal Air Force in the period up to 2015.

Andrew Robathan: The Strategic Defence and Security Review announced a reduction of about 25,000 civilians across the Ministry of Defence (MOD) by April 2015. Since then, we have completed further work in preparation for the next planning round. In July we announced a reduction of a further 7,000 civilians from 2015.
	The MOD's budget and civilian manning are not distributed on a single service basis.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many main battle tanks are available for service in the Army.

Peter Luff: Following the implementation of the strategic defence and security review the Army's supported main battle tank fleet now consists of 227 Challenger 2. The Ministry of Defence is currently considering the disposal options for the 118 Challenger 2 that are no longer part of the supported fleet.

AWE: Radioactive Waste

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what target date he has set for the completion of treatment of intermediate level radioactive waste held at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE); and when he expects the planned geological disposal facility for radioactive waste to begin accepting waste from the AWE.

Peter Luff: No target date has been set for the completion of the treatment of intermediate level radioactive waste (ILW) at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE), as treatment is likely to be necessary for the duration of the nuclear weapons programme, including during the decommissioning and disposal of sites, facilities and equipment.
	The Ministry of Defence's current planning assumption for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's national geological disposal facility to commence the receipt of AWE's ILW materials is 2070.

Battle of Waterloo: Anniversaries

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to commemorate the bicentenary of the battle of Waterloo in 2015.

Andrew Robathan: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my noble Friend, Baroness Rawlings to the noble Lord, Lord Laird, in another place on 29 June 2011, Official Report, column WA423.

Defence: Territorial Waters

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what defensive measures he has in place to ensure the effective protection of UK territorial waters in the event the Royal Navy's emergency stand-by vessel is unavailable.;
	(2)  whether the Royal Navy has failed to provide a warship for emergency stand-by at any time in the last six months.

Nick Harvey: There are always a number of Royal Navy units at sea maintaining the security of UK waters. Should a warship be required for emergency stand-by, one of these would be tasked accordingly. There has been no requirement for such tasking in the last six months.
	Other Government Departments and their agencies, such as the UK Border Agency and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, also contribute to the safeguarding of our shores.

Departmental Manpower

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many officials were (a) directly and (b) otherwise employed by non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible (i) in 2000, (ii) in 2005, (iii) in 2007, (iv) in 2010 and (v) on the most recent date for which figures are available.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has responsibility for 28 non-departmental public bodies (NDPB): three executive bodies; 23 advisory bodies; one public corporation; and one independent monitoring board.
	The 23 advisory bodies, consisting of public appointees, provide independent and expert advice to Ministers on particular topics of interest. They do not employ their own staff.
	The three service museums are the executive bodies for which the MOD is responsible. They are allocated their own budgets and employ their own staff, in 2010-11 their staff, who are not civil servants, numbered 255.
	The Oil and Pipelines Agency is the MOD public corporation, and has employed 44 staff since July 2011, this includes two civil servants on secondment from the Department since 2010.
	The Department publishes a detailed annual document ‘Public Bodies 2010’ which summarises each public body and provides basic data concerning arrangements for governance, code of conduct and appointments, income/expenditure, staff arrangements and equalities data. This can be found at:
	http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/AboutDefence/CorporatePublications/AnnualReports/AnnualReportsAgenciesNDPBs/AnnualReportsAgenciesNdpbs.htm
	A copy will be placed in the Library of the House.

Departmental Marketing

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people his Department employs to work on marketing and communications.

Andrew Robathan: Communications posts deliver a wide range of services including marketing, media and press services, internal communications, digital and social media services and corporate communications.
	The latest figures for posts providing or supporting communications roles were recorded as at 31 March 2011. The total number of such posts was 688. This compares with 748.5 as at 31 March 2010. Both service and civilian personnel fulfil communications roles throughout Defence and the Department's trading funds, including in the service commands and in operational theatres. This total includes posts that were vacant at the time of the survey. It also includes a number of posts where the communications role is a partial duty and the post holder will have other significant responsibilities.
	Savings have been made across communications during the course of the current financial year and further substantial reductions are planned.

Departmental Pay

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many officials in his Department and the bodies for which he is responsible earned more than (a) £65,000, (b) £95,000, (c) £140,000 and (d) £175,000 in the last year for which figures are available.

Andrew Robathan: In financial year 2010-11, 770 staff earned more than £65,000 in basic salary. This figure includes those in bodies for which the Secretary of State for Defence has responsibility. Details of the bands requested are as follows:
	
		
			 Salary range Subtotals 
			 £65,000-£94,999 707 
			 £95,000-£139,999 49 
			 £140,000-£174,999 9 
			 £175,000 plus 5 
			 Total 770 
		
	
	This figure includes 84 part-time staff whose salaries have been included and shown as full-time equivalents (FTE). The total figure represents less than 1% of the total civilian workforce in the Department. The figures include senior civil servants, civilian doctors, medical consultants, dental practitioners, Ministry of Defence police and teaching grades.
	The Department has implemented Government policy and introduced a pay freeze which, for the senior civil service, will remain in force until 31 March 2013 and for those below until 31 July 2013. This, together with the planned reduction in civil service numbers at all grades, should see the number earning over £65,000 fall further by 2014.

Departmental Written Questions

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ordinary written questions tabled to his Department by hon. Members over the last three years have not received a substantive reply in more than (a) one month and (b) two months; and what the subjects were of those questions.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) received 6,932 ordinary written questions to answer during the last three parliamentary sessions to 31 October 2011. Of these, 67 did not receive a substantive reply in more than a month. Of those, 15 did not receive a substantive reply in more than two months. The subjects of the questions were estates, aircraft, reports, animals, IT, costs, operations, the Data Protection Act, manpower, pay, medical, the Met Office, entertainment, correspondence, the civil service, the armed forces, transport, veterans, contracts, disposals, procurement, ships, Afghanistan, the Army, NATO, correspondence, Trident, security, public relations, travel and military aid.
	The MOD shall be providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance at the end of the parliamentary session. Statistics relating to the MOD's performance for the 2009-10 session were previously provided to the Committee and are available on the Parliament website.

Government Procurement Card

Chris Kelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Government Procurement Card transactions were made by his Department's officials withdrawing cash from automated teller machines from 2006-07 to 2009-10; at what cost; and on which dates.

Peter Luff: The use of a Government Procurement Card (GPC) to withdraw cash is exceptional and cardholders must obtain approval from the central branch responsible for GPC policy in order to active this facility. Such cash withdrawals are, in general terms, only authorised to support military operations and overseas deployments, arid for emergencies such as, disaster recovery and emergency aircraft landings.
	37 GPC cash transactions, totalling £17,721.01 are recorded, for the period April 2006 to March 2010. Cash transactions include those over the counter at a bank and the use of automated teller machines (ATMs). It is not possible to identify solely ATM transactions.
	The date of each transaction is detailed in the following list:
	Date of transaction
	5 July 2006
	14 August 2006
	21 August 2006
	21 August 2006
	9 November 2006
	16 November 2006
	16 November 2006
	18 November 2006
	18 November 2006
	30 November 2006
	2 February 2007
	15 June 2007
	15 June 2007
	15 June 2007
	16 June 2007
	16 June 2007
	3 July 2007
	19 September 2007
	20 September 2007
	15 November 2007
	11 January 2008
	2 May 2008
	2 May 2008
	17 July 2008
	21 August 2008
	27 August 2008
	30 August 2008
	6 October 2008
	19 November 2008
	3 December 2008
	31 March 2009
	24 June 2009
	24 June 2009
	25 June 2009
	27 June 2009
	8 August 2009
	5 November 2009.

Honours and Decoration Committee

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  who he intends to appoint to conduct the independent review of the Honours and Decoration Committee; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he intends to establish the independent review of the Honours and Decorations Committee; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The Government have agreed that there should be a fresh review of the rules governing the award of military medals. This will be conducted by an independent reviewer with full consultation with interested parties. The scope of the review and who is to lead it are expected to be announced shortly.

Old Drill Hall

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 27 October 2011, Official Report, column 327W, on Old Drill Hall, whether it is his present understanding that his Department had title to the Old Drill Hall, Weymouth at the time of its sale in 1993.

Andrew Robathan: Based on legal advice it was understood, at the time of sale, that the Ministry of Defence had title to the Old Drill Hall, Weymouth. That position was later accepted by the Land Registry.
	After the passage of almost 20 years it is not possible to say more but the Department's position has been upheld by the courts on several occasions since 2005.

RAF Lossiemouth: European Fighter Aircraft

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the effect on Quick Reaction Alert response times of basing the Typhoon force at RAF Lossiemouth.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 8 November 2011
	RAF Lossiemouth has already proved successful in holding the Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) North role on a temporary basis during periods when essential resurfacing work was undertaken on the RAF Leuchars runway.
	At RAF Lossiemouth, Typhoon Aircraft will be held at continuous ground readiness, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will continue to maintain the mandated QRA North ability to take off within minutes to protect UK sovereign airspace. RAF Coningsby will continue to hold the QRA South role.
	I am withholding further information on assessment of specific air defence scenarios as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

Reserve Forces: London 2012 Olympics

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to mobilise the Territorial Army or other reserve forces for security duties associated with the London 2012 Olympics.

Nick Harvey: The Ministry of Defence will be providing a range of capabilities, in support of other Government Departments, for the Olympic and Paralympic games. The mobilisation of reserve personnel from all three services is being considered as part of Defence's overall contribution alongside regular colleagues.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Accountancy: EU Law

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on including within revised EU Accounting Directives and Transparency Directive requirements for companies to report country-specific data on (a) production volumes and (b) sales and employee numbers.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development is not required to apply this directive. The directive applies to companies listed and operating within European markets, with specific reference to extractive and forestry industries. Government Departments are not required to follow these directives, unless they have been endorsed by HM Treasury to be applied within government reporting requirements. To date there is no proposal to reflect this area within government reporting.

Departmental Consultants

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many full-time equivalent staff are employed on consultancy contracts in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) enters its consultancy contracts directly with the lead supplier, based on delivery within a total cost. The number of full time equivalent staff a supplier may use to deliver a contract is not monitored centrally by DFID.

Kyrgyzstan: Overseas Aid

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects his Department is funding in Kyrgyzstan.

Alan Duncan: DFID has been active in the Kyrgyz Republic since 1997. We use a range of aid instruments including technical assistance projects, programme-based support, and sector budget support to the health sector.
	Promoting good governance is a key focus of our work. For example, DFID is assisting the government of the Kyrgyz Republic through support to strengthen public financial management Since 2009, we have worked jointly with the World Bank (WB), the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC), and the European Union (EU) in close partnership with the Ministry of Finance to improve the budget formulation process; strengthen internal audit; help re-organise the Ministry of Finance; and strengthen civil society to increase accountability and promote transparency around public spending.
	I have recently visited the Kyrgyz Republic, during which I made an assessment of our current and future projects. I have deposited a list of projects currently funded by the Department in the Library of the House. The list includes a number of regional projects covering other Central Asian countries as well as the Kyrgyz Republic.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

British Virgin Islands: Elections

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what basis observers were invited to oversee the election process in the British Virgin Islands; who selected the observers; and who was consulted.

Jeremy Browne: Election observers were invited by the Governor of the British Virgin Islands, on the basis that it is normal and good practice for open democracies to invite observers to attend elections. The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) regularly observes elections in the Caribbean, for example in Haiti this year, St Kitts and Nevis and St Vincent and the Grenadines last year, and the Turks and Caicos Islands in 2007. The Virgin Islands invited an observer from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) for elections in 1995.
	The observers were arranged by the Secretariat of the Caribbean Community and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association British Isles and Mediterranean Region, who invited expressions of interest from their members.
	In advance of inviting the observers, the Governor discussed the initiative with members of the British Virgin Islands Government Cabinet. The Governor also discussed his invitation with the Leader of the Opposition.

British Virgin Islands: Elections

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs who decided to invite election observers to oversee the election process in the British Virgin Islands.

Jeremy Browne: The decision to invite election observers was taken by the Governor of the British Virgin Islands, following consultation with the Premier and the Cabinet.

Departmental Freedom of Information

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in respect of how many responses to requests for information received by his Department under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 the reason of (a) commercially sensitive information, (b) information not held, (c) information too costly to provide and (d)  vexatious or repeated requests has been given in response since January 2010.

David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office holds information for the period January 2010 to June 2011. The information requested is as follows for that period:(a) 42; (b)320; (c) 224; (d) Nine. Figures for the third quarter of 2011 will be available shortly.

Departmental Freedom of Information

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which Minister in his Department is responsible for determining whether exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 should apply to responses to requests for information under the Act; and which other Minister is responsible for making such determinations should the subject matter of the request fall within the ministerial responsibilities of the Minister with lead responsibility.

David Lidington: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests are usually dealt with by the lead Policy Department, with the assistance of the Information Rights Team which specialises in the handling of FOIA requests. As the Policy Department has responsibility for the reply, if a request needs to be referred to a Minister, it will usually be to the Minister who has responsibility for that Department.

Departmental Legal Opinion

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on (a) legal advice and (b) instructing counsel in (i) 2007, (ii) 2009, (iii) 2010 and (iv) the first six months of 2011; how many times (A) his Department was taken to court and (B) a decision taken by his Department was subject to a judicial review; and what the outcome was of each such (1) case and (2) review.

David Lidington: Central records of this information are not maintained, and an accurate answer to this question cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost. For information about the procedures for seeking external legal advice, I refer my hon. Friend to my answer of 17 October 2011, Official Report, columns 615-16W, to the hon. Member for Penistone and Stocksbridge (Angela Smith).

Departmental Written Questions

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many parliamentary questions for written answer on a named day by his Department were answered (a) on time, (b) five days late, (c) 10 days late, (d) 20 days late and (e) over 30 days late in each month since May 2010.

David Lidington: The information requested is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  On time 5 sitting days late 10 sitting days late 20 sitting days late 30 sitting days late 
			 2010      
			 May 3 0 0 0 0 
			 June 46 1 0 0 0 
			 July 38 0 0 0 0 
			 September 23 0 0 0 0 
			 October 36 0 0 0 0 
			 November 67 4 0 0 0 
			 December .29 0 0 0 0 
			       
			 2011      
			 January 47 0 0 0 0 
			 February 49 2 0 0 0 
			 March 68 3 0 0 0 
			 April 26 0 0 0 0 
			 May 16 2 0 0 0 
			 June 49 0 0 0 0 
			 July 36 0 0 0 0 
			 August 6 0 0 0 0 
			 September 16 0 0 0 0 
			 October 46 1 0 0 0

Iran: Human Rights

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the recent report of Ahmed Shaheed, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran on human rights in that country; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We strongly support the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran. His recent report outlined the key priorities for his mandate pointing to some grave concerns shared by the UK over Iran's human rights record. We call on Iran to work with Dr Shaheed to improve its human rights record, and to allow Dr Shaheed to visit Iran.

IRG

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 2 November 2011, Official Report, column 663W, on IRG, whether any civil servants were present at the meeting between the Under-Secretary of State and Stephen Crouch in Sudan in July 2010.

Henry Bellingham: Officials were present in the arrivals lounge, but were talking with South Sudanese officials during the brief conversation.

Kenya: Human Rights

Amber Rudd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has had with the Government of Kenya on (a) preventing the forcible return of those within its territories or at its borders into areas of insecurity and (b) ensuring punishment and prosecution of those of its agents who engage in human rights violations.

Jeremy Browne: The British Government have urged the Kenyan Government not to forcibly return Somali refugees in Kenya to Somalia. Most recently the British High Commission raised concerns about the refugees' situation in a meeting with Prime Minister Odinga on 28 October. The Department for International Development is providing £128 million of support in response to the humanitarian crisis.
	The UK is a leading advocate of the reform of the police and the judiciary set out in Kenya's new constitution. We have funded civil society to lobby on allegations of extra-judicial killings and assisted with the process of police reform, including offering advice on new legislation that puts human rights and new oversight mechanisms at its heart. We take allegations of human rights violations extremely seriously and raise such concerns with the Kenyan Government.

Sri Lanka

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions he discussed matters relating to Sri Lanka with the right hon. Member for North Somerset when the latter was Secretary of State for Defence.

William Hague: I had regular discussions on a wide range of issues with my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox) in the normal course of business.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Monuments: Chartism

Jessica Morden: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, if the House of Commons Commission will consider marking the Chartist movement in the Palace of Westminster.

John Thurso: The Commission has no plans to do so. Such matters are usually handled by Mr Speaker, who is advised by the Advisory Committee on Works of Art.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

British Nationals Abroad: Elections

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he has any plans to change the right of UK citizens living abroad to vote in elections.

Mark Harper: The Representation of the People Act 1985 provided for the first time for UK citizens living overseas to be able to register to vote in general and European parliamentary elections in the UK on a time limited basis. Currently, British citizens living overseas can register to vote in these elections, provided they have been previously registered in the UK in the past 15 years.
	The Government are considering whether the 15 year time limit remains appropriate, if a change is proposed, Parliament will need to reconsider the issue.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

British Chambers of Commerce: Surveys

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the recommendations made in the British Chambers of Commerce Workforce Survey: Small Businesses report.

Edward Davey: The Department is leading the cross-Government Employment Law Review and is looking at all evidence about the operation of the underpinning legislative framework and burdens on business, including from the British Chambers of Commerce, other business representative groups, trade unions and other stakeholders. A key objective of the review is making it easier for a business to take on staff. The review will also consider ideas that emerge from the Red Tape Challenge aimed at facilitating the recruitment of employees by businesses. Where we can make legislation easier to understand, improve efficiency and reduce unnecessary bureaucracy, we will.

Departmental Assets

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assets with a value of £250,000 or more his Department has bought since May 2010; for what purpose; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Davey: Core BIS has commissioned eight assets with a value of £250,000 or more since May 2010 with a total value of £6,670,675. Some of these assets were previously recorded as “assets under construction” but have been commissioned for use since May 2010. Equally, during the period, expenditure was incurred on assets still under construction. This expenditure has not been included in the following response but this spend has been capitalised on the BIS balance sheet, recorded in “assets under construction”.
	The following three assets relate to information technology projects:
	Implementation of service enhancements to the Disaster Recovery service—£684,758
	Replacement Content Management System for internet service—£266,427
	New Shared Web Services for BIS and its partner organisations—£667,298.
	The following five assets relate to building and estates projects:
	Meeting room environmental works at 1 Victoria Street, London—£662,837
	Replacement air handling and chillers at 1 Victoria Street, London—£3,172,751
	Work carried out to heating and ventilation at 1 Victoria Street, London—£323,520
	Replacement roof and maintenance work at 10 Victoria Street, London—£327,823
	Re-fit of Europa Buildings, Glasgow prior to relocation of staff—£565,261.

Export Credit Guarantees

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much each country owes to the Export Credits Guarantee Department.

Edward Davey: Debt owed by sovereign Governments to the Export Credits Guarantee Department is shown by country in the following table.
	
		
			 Country Total debt (£ million) 
			 Antigua and Barbuda 1.45 
			 Argentina 45.24 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1.36 
			 Congo, DR 19.64 
			 Cote D'Ivoire 21.02 
			 Cuba 189.68 
			 Dominica 6.79 
			 Ecuador 31.75 
			 Egypt 94.25 
			 Grenada 1.76 
			 Guinea 4.30 
			 Indonesia 468.11 
			 Iran 28.44 
			 Iraq 281.70 
			 Kenya 16.12 
			 Korea, DPR 5.86 
			 Myanmar 54.02 
			 Pakistan 5.73 
			 Serbia 186.48 
			 Seychelles 1.15 
			 Somalia 51.65 
			 Sudan 677.74 
			 Vietnam 6.68 
			 Zimbabwe 194.44 
			 Total 2,395.37

Export Credit Guarantees

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which countries have received loans from the Export Credits Guarantee Department in each of the last five financial years for which figures are available; and what each country received in each year.

Edward Davey: None. The Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) does not make loans to countries. It provides guarantees to banks for export credit loans used to finance exports, and provides credit insurance policies to exporters against non-payment risks.
	The aggregate value of the guarantees and insurance policies issued in each of the last five years is shown in the following table by country. This information is routinely made available in ECGD's Annual Report and Accounts. ECGD would make payments under its guarantees or insurance policies in the event of a claim, typically due to a buyer default on payments due to the UK exporter.
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Country 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 
			 Abu Dhabi — — — 184 82 
			 Australia — — 48 140 152 
			 Austria — — — 5 9 
		
	
	
		
			 Azerbaijan 5 — — — — 
			 Bahrain — — — 41 6 
			 Bermuda — — — 42 81 
			 Brazil  60 93 48 84 
			 Chile 46 37 91 — 128 
			 China 1 — — 3 146 
			 Colombia — — 14 67 — 
			 Czech Republic 22 17 8 — — 
			 Dubai — — — — 371 
			 Egypt — — 0.3 — 331 
			 El Salvador 21 42 — 13 — 
			 Finland — — — 29 15 
			 France — — — — 0.5 
			 Ghana — — 19 — — 
			 Greece — — 26 9 — 
			 India — 61 19 — 14 
			 Indonesia — 2 12 — — 
			 Iraq — — — — 0.5 
			 Ireland — — — 118 121 
			 Israel — 11 — — — 
			 Kazakhstan — 18 — 0.2 — 
			 Kenya 6 — — — — 
			 Korea, Republic of — — — 3 33 
			 Kuwait — — 13 105 56 
			 Luxembourg — — 7 — 87 
			 Malaysia 4 27 70 129 125 
			 Mauritius — — — 14 — 
			 Mexico 13 46 — — — 
			 Morocco 5 — — — — 
			 Netherlands 24 30 40 233 105 
			 Nigeria — — 52 30 5 
			 Oman — — — 139 29 
			 Pakistan 65 — — 37 — 
			 Philippines 71 44 56 33 48 
			 Portugal — 35 21 — — 
			 Qatar 91 48 16 — — 
			 Russian Federation 44 15 — 35 343 
			 Saudi Arabia 122 750 252 2 62 
			 Sharjah — — — — 20 
			 Singapore — — — 75 107 
			 Slovakia — — — — 15 
			 South Africa — 34 30 24 14 
			 Sri Lanka — 80 — — — 
			 Taiwan 87 — — — — 
			 Thailand 35 — — 161 — 
			 Trinidad and Tobago — 276 — — — 
			 Tunisia — — — — 6 
			 Turkey 75 58 83 21 181 
			 United Arab Emirates — — — 29 113 
			 USA 105 79 450 401 28 
			 Vietnam 44 33 22 15 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Other business not listed(1) 911 30 19 21 1 
			 (1) Details not disclosed (e.g. for reasons of commercial confidentiality).

Export Credit Guarantees

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will place in the Library a list of scheduled debt repayments by sovereign states to the Export Credits Guarantee Department.

Edward Davey: The information requested will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Export Credit Guarantees

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to ensure that the new trade finance products offered by the Export Credits Guarantee Department are marketed and accessible to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Edward Davey: holding answer 8 November 2011
	The Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) has been undertaking a market awareness campaign across the United Kingdom, alongside UK Trade and Investment, banks, trade associations and professional bodies, to meet small and medium-sized exporters to inform them of the availability of its new products which it introduced earlier this year. It has an ongoing programme to raise awareness of its products to as many exporters as possible through direct contact, the media and other avenues.

Export Credit Guarantees

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reason the Export Credits Guarantee Department's short-term credit insurance policy requires a minimum contract value of £20,000; and what assessment he has made of the effect of reducing the contract value.

Edward Davey: holding answer 8 November 2011
	The Export Credits Guarantee Department's (ECGD) credit insurance policy (the Export Insurance Policy) is designed to support single export contracts, for amounts greater than £20,000, where cover from the private credit insurance markets is unavailable, with that limit set because of its administrative cost in processing business below that level. If requested by an exporter, ECGD will consider support for a contract below £20,000.
	ECGD intends to carry out a review of the product early next year and, in doing so, will consider the merits of setting no minimum contract value limit.

Export Credit Guarantees: Egypt

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will consider commissioning an audit of the debt owed by Egypt to the Export Credits Guarantee Department.

Edward Davey: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to the right hon. Member for Gordon (Malcolm Bruce) on 8 June 2011, Official Report, column 395W.

Iron and Steel: Competition

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the request to his Department from UK Steel, what his policy is on providing Government assistance to ensure the ongoing competitiveness of the UK steel industry.

Mark Prisk: We are unaware of any specific request from UK Steel. However, this Department works closely with UK Steel and the steel sector on a range of issues related to maintaining their international competitiveness. This includes seeking to minimise unnecessary regulatory burdens by involving the sector in discussions on better regulation and taking steps to reduce the impact of Government policy on the cost of electricity to ensure that the UK steel industry remains internationally competitive.
	Any Government support for the steel industry needs to be compatible with the EC State Aid rules. Regional investment or operating aid may not be granted to the steel sector, however other forms of aid including aid for research, development and innovation, training and environmental investments is permitted.
	The steel industry has opportunities to participate in collaborative research and development projects funded by the Technology Strategy Board and the EU Research Fund for Coal and Steel.

Job Creation

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many jobs were (a) directly and (b) indirectly created by each successful bid in the second round of Regional Growth Fund allocations.

Mark Prisk: On the basis of information provided by applicants up to 327,000 direct and indirect jobs (127,000 in Round 1 and over 200,000 in Round 2) will be created or safeguarded by the first two rounds of successful bids to the Regional Growth Fund. Progress towards the job target specified in the grant offer letter will be monitored quarterly.

Metals

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make it his policy that giving of cash purchases of metal by scrap metal merchants should not be allowed and that scrap metal merchants should document all purchases of metal, identifying from whom such metal was bought.

James Brokenshire: I have been asked to reply.
	Discussions are under way across Government on whether legislative changes are needed to tackle metal theft.

Metals

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what consideration he has given to creating a statutory register of scrap metal merchants.

Mark Prisk: There is already a statutory requirement for scrap metal dealers to register with their local authority under the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964. Furthermore, operators of scrap metal yards require either an environmental permit or a registered exemption from the Environment Agency, under waste management legislation.

Plastics

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of efforts by the plastics industry to reduce the carbon footprint arising from manufacturing and recycling plastic.

Mark Prisk: The Department for Business Innovation and Skills has made no formal assessment in this respect. However, the Government recognise the importance of the UK plastics industry and its role in the transition to a green economy, in particular through developing and supplying low carbon products and solutions which help other manufacturing sectors.
	Through a close dialogue with the British Plastics Federation the Government are aware of the role of plastics in minimising greenhouse gas emissions. Plastics are increasingly used for components across business sectors. For example, in the automotive and aerospace sectors plastics usage is significantly reducing the weight of motor vehicles and aircraft, resulting in improved fuel efficiency, and corresponding reductions in emissions.

Regional Growth Fund

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what bids for the third tranche of the Regional Growth Fund have been made by applicants in the East of England; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: At this time there are no plans for a third round of the Regional Growth Fund.

Research: Expenditure

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 17 October 2011, Official Report, column 757W, on research: expenditure, what assessment he has made of the relationship between the reduction in research and development in real terms and (a) future improvements to productivity in the UK economy, (b) innovation and product development from UK companies and (c) competitiveness of companies relative to other countries; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: The information is as follows:
	(a) While Business Enterprise Research and Development (BERD) declined by 4.1% in real terms between 2008 and 2009, the economy saw a greater drop in GDP, of 4.9%. As such, the intensity of business investment in the UK—BERD as a percentage of GDP—increased slightly over the period, from 1.10% to 1.12%.
	Innovation is an important driver of productivity, contributing 63% of all labour productivity growth between 2000 and 2008. Research and Development (R and D) is an important part of innovation, but many other factors are also crucial to this productivity growth, including process innovation and knowledge acquisition. The UK's industry and sector mix makes these other factors particularly important to productivity growth. In 2008, BERD accounted for around 10% of total investment in innovation.
	(b) The next wave of the UK Innovation Survey will be released next year. This will provide details of businesses' sales of innovative goods. The last wave of the survey, covering 2006 to 2008, showed that:
	there were increases in the shares of firms with a product innovation and an increase in the shares of firms with a process innovation during the three-year period compared to the period 2004 to 2006;
	nearly half of product innovations and a third of process innovations were “leading edge” or novel.
	Businesses invest in a wide range of innovation activities other than research and development. These include the acquisition of machinery, equipment and software, the acquisition of knowledge, design activities and training for innovative activities. In 2008 these activities accounted for over 57% of business expenditure on innovation activities.
	(c) While UK BERD experienced a real terms drop of 4.1% in 2009, research and development expenditure is pro-cyclical and as such is expected to rise and fall in line with GDP. As noted above, the UK's BERD intensity rose slightly during 2009. This contrasts with a fall in BERD intensity in countries including Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands and Japan. Small rises of a similar scale to the UK were seen in Germany and France. US data is not currently available for 2009.
	Despite the economic downturn, in 2009 the top 1,000 UK R&D performing firms reduced their R and D investment less than the top R and D performing firms in many major competitors, including France, Germany and the US.

Science

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department is implementing the Life Sciences Blueprint published in July 2009; and what progress he has made on any implementation.

David Willetts: holding answer 7 November 2011
	The “Life Sciences 2010: Delivering the Blueprint” supported by the BIS Economics Paper No. 2—Life Sciences in the UK, published on 26 January 2010, set out specific details of progress on actions in the Life Sciences Blueprint.
	On 23 March 2011, as part of the Plan for Growth, the Government announced a package of actions in support of growth in the life sciences and social care sectors. A number of these build on actions from the Life Sciences Blueprint and other existing initiatives. The Healthcare and Life Sciences growth review actions include:
	Clinical trials and health research:
	reducing regulatory burden and improving the cost effectiveness of clinical trials;
	setting up a new Health Research Authority to streamline regulation;
	making National Institute for Health Research funding to Providers of NHS Services conditional on meeting benchmarks, including a 70 day benchmark to recruit first patients for trials;
	opening up information and choice about clinical trials;
	building consensus on using e-health record data to create unique opportunities for research in the UK;
	opening up information on clinical research to promote collaboration and innovation, and
	looking to publish prescribing data at a practice level, subject to an evaluation and impact assessment by the NHS Information Centre.
	Collaboration and innovation in the life sciences sector:
	to establish translational research partnerships (TRPs), from its £775 million investment in NHR Biomedical Research Centres and Units. On 4 October 2011, the Under-Secretary of State for Health, my noble Friend Earl Howe, formally launched the first two National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) TRP's on Inflammatory Respiratory Disease and on Joint and Related Inflammatory Diseases;
	actions to remove any barriers that limit the further development of geographical clusters for entrepreneurship and business growth;
	a competition to form a Cell Therapy Technology and Innovation Centre (TIC);
	improve market signalling by bringing companies and educators together to ensure educators provide the skilled individuals the sector needs to grow;
	ensure the Intellectual Property (IP) system supports life sciences businesses, and
	encourage innovation in NHS procurement, including £10 million investment by the Department of Health in the Small Business Research Initiative on healthcare challenges.
	Additionally, the Government asked Sir David Nicholson, chief executive of the NHS, to carry out a review on how the adoption and diffusion of innovations can be accelerated across the NHS. Sir Ian Carruthers, chief executive of NHS South West, has been asked to lead the project on Sir David's behalf. Sir Ian is working in consultation with industry, academia and intermediaries to inform the report which will be submitted to Government by November 2011.
	On social care:
	we are improving the take up of assisted living technology, including an £18 million R&D investment programme through the Technology Strategy Board, and
	we are stripping out regulations that were never meant for the social care market and prevent market entry for small providers and flexible services.
	Building on these initiatives the Prime Minister has asked me, together with the Under-Secretary of State for Health, my noble Friend Earl Howe, to lead on work to identify potential areas for further development in health-related aspects of the Life Sciences sector. The work is in the context of recent developments in life sciences, such as the changing research and development (R and D) business model.

Trade Promotion: Nigeria

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what trade missions UK Trade and Investment has carried out in Nigeria in each of the last two years; and what missions are planned in the next 12 months.

Mark Prisk: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) in Nigeria facilitates trade missions on behalf of a range of organisations. They enable UK companies to visit the country and meet potential customers, agents and distributors. The following list shows the missions that have taken place over the past two years and those planned for the next 12 months.
	In addition the Prime Minister visited Nigeria in July 2011 accompanied by a business delegation.
	2009
	London Chamber of Commerce
	UKTI Information Technology sector group
	Afro-Caribbean Chamber of Commerce
	2010
	UKTI Defence and Security Organisation
	London Chamber of Commerce
	2011
	Training Gateway
	Transport Scoping
	‘IFSEC West Africa’ Security
	2012 (to be confirmed)
	London Chamber of Commerce
	UKTI/BESA Education Mission
	UK Mass Transport Mission.

UK Trade and Investment: Local Economic Partnerships

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will put in place protocols to ensure that UK Trade and Investment engages proactively with local economic partnerships for the purposes of increasing exports of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Mark Prisk: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), acting through its regional directors, has always worked with local businesses and other organisations with an interest in economic development, in developing international strategies, and this will continue. UKTI will be working with each local enterprise partnership to develop (where the local enterprise partnership wants to) an international strategy for the wider area, taking account of local conditions and local business base. This approach implements the Government's commitment in the Local Growth White Paper that UKTI will ensure an interface with local enterprise partnerships in relation to local delivery and priorities for international trade support.

EDUCATION

English Baccalaureate

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of pupils (a) entered and (b) achieved the English Baccalaureate by constituency in the latest year for which figures are available.

Nick Gibb: The figures requested have been placed in the House Libraries.

Schools: Vocational Guidance

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his assessment is of the finding in the paper prepared for his Department by Professor Tony Watts, entitled The Proposed Model for Career Guidance in England: Some Lessons from International Examples, that leaving it to schools to decide whether or not to commission professional career guidance for their pupils will have damaging effects.

Nick Gibb: We believe it is right to give schools greater freedom and flexibility to make decisions that are in the best interests of their pupils, including in relation to careers guidance. We do not agree with the view that to trust schools in this way will have damaging effects. We must retain a focus on outcomes that show the extent to which young people are achieving and progressing to higher levels of education or training, or into employment, rather than on specific inputs such as the amount or type of careers guidance.
	Young people receive advice on their futures from many different sources but some will benefit from face-to-face support that raises their aspirations and guides them onto a successful career path. We will issue statutory guidance making it clear to schools that they should secure face-to-face careers guidance where it is the most suitable support, in particular for disadvantaged young people and those with special educational needs and disabilities.

Young People: Vocational Training

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on the support available in schools for young people preparing for post-16 vocational training and apprenticeships;
	(2)  what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the support provided in schools for young people preparing for post-16 vocational training and apprenticeships.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 7 November 2011
	The Secretary of State for Education and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills discuss support for young people entering post-16 education and training at Cabinet.
	Evidence suggests that young people are not consistently receiving high quality careers guidance. That is why, through the current Education Bill, we are giving schools responsibility for securing access to independent and impartial careers guidance for their pupils. This must include information on the full range of post-16 academic and vocational options, including apprenticeships. A range of high quality sources of information on apprenticeships are widely available, including those produced by the National Apprenticeship Service.
	The Department for Education will issue focused statutory guidance to schools in advance of the new duty coming into force in September 2012. This will set a clear expectation that schools should secure face-to-face careers guidance where it is the most suitable support, particularly for the disadvantaged.

JUSTICE

Adam Werritty

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether (a) he, (b) officials of his Department and (c) special advisers in his Department have met Mr Adam Werritty on official business since May 2010; and how many such meetings took place (i) on his Department's premises and (ii) elsewhere.

Kenneth Clarke: Neither I, nor my ministerial colleagues or special advisers have attended meetings with Adam Werritty since May 2010.
	The Ministry of Justice does not centrally record meetings attended by all officials in the department. To collate the information requested would exceed the cost limit for answering parliamentary questions.

Community Orders: Per Capita Costs

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his most recent estimate is of the average annual cost to the Probation Service of supervising an individual on a community order with a programme attached for (a) domestic violence, (b) sexual offending, (c) anger management, (d) drug misuse and (e) alcohol misuse.

Crispin Blunt: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is currently specifying and costing activities undertaken by probation trusts. As part of the Government's commitment to provide greater transparency, to enable the public to hold services to account and assess whether they are receiving value for money from the services we provide, NOMS will publish, in autumn 2012, three probation level input indicators one of which is the cost per community order. This will be the average, fully-apportioned cost to probation of delivering a community order or suspended sentence order sentence to the service definition as detailed in the NOMS service specification. This will include both managing the sentence and delivering court-ordered requirements. The costs of the latter will be derived from the average number and type of requirements attached to a sentence for an offender on each tier.
	NOMS has published costed specifications for the following court-ordered requirements:
	
		
			 Programme Estimated cost per completion (£) 
			 Domestic violence and anger management programmes  
			 Aggression replacement treatment 1,428 
			 Controlling anger and learning to manage it 1,564 
			 Community domestic violence programme 3,572 
			 Integrated domestic abuse programme 3,288 
			   
			 Sex offender treatment programmes  
			 Community sex offender groupwork programme 4,148 
			 Internet sex offender treatment programme 3,471 
			 Thames Valley sex offender groupwork programme 4,515 
			 Northumbria sex offender groupwork programme 5,431 
		
	
	
		
			   
			 Substance misuse programmes  
			 Addressing substance related offending 1,515 
			 Control of violence for angry impulsive drinkers 1,039 
			 Drink impaired driving 852 
			 Low intensity alcohol programme 923 
			 Offender substance abuse programme 2,088

Community Orders: Per Capita Costs

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his most recent estimate is of the average annual cost to the Probation Service of supervising an individual undertaking unpaid work in (a) England and (b) Wales for (i) 100 hours, (ii) 240 hours and (iii) 300 hours.

Crispin Blunt: The NOMS Specification, Benchmarking and Costing (SBC) programme is creating specifications to be used in commissioning the services NOMS funds. This includes work to support benchmarking by estimating how much it should cost to deliver each service.
	Using fieldwork undertaken in 2009 as part of SBC's work, the average annual cost of supervising an individual sentenced to unpaid work, excluding the cost of commencing the sentence is estimated to be:
	(a) England
	(i) for 100 hours: £826
	(ii) for 240 hours: £1,982
	(iii) for 300 hours: £2,478
	(b) Wales
	(i) for 100 hours: £800
	(ii) for 240 hours: £1,920
	(iii) for 300 hours: £2,400.
	The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is developing systems to breakdown current expenditure on a service by service basis, including unpaid work. Once the information has been reviewed and validated we will then consider how best to use it to meet commitments under the Government's Transparency Agenda.

Departmental Pay

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many officials in his Department and the bodies for which he is responsible earned more than (a) £65,000, (b) £95,000, (c) £140,000 and (d) £175,000 in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many officials in his Department received a pay rise other than by promotion in the last two years; and what the average increase was in each such year;
	(3)  how many officials in his Department received a bonus in each year since 2007.

Crispin Blunt: The information is as follows:
	(a) As of September 2011, there are 798 members of staff currently working within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (including NOMS) earning more than £65,000 (FTE) in the financial year 2011-12(1).
	(b) As of September 2011, there are 58 members of staff currently working within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (including NOMS) earning more than £95,000 (FTE) in the financial year 2011-12(1).
	(c) As of September 2011, there are 10 members of staff currently working within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (including NOMS) earning more than £140,000 (FTE) in the financial year 2011-12(1).
	(d) As of September 2011, there is one member of staff currently working within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (including NOMS) earning more than £175,000 (FTE) in the financial year 2011-12(1).
	(1) The figures provided above are inclusive of one another, for example the 58 members of staff earning more than £95,000 are included in the 798 figure and so forth.
	Ministry of Justice staff below the  senior civil service  (excluding NOMS)
	In August 2010, the pay award for staff below the senior civil service on Ministry of Justice terms and conditions (known as the ‘Deal’) was implemented. 25,266 members of staff received consolidated increases in salary, with the average increase being £855.
	On 22 June 2010, Official Report, columns 166-80, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), announced a two-year pay freeze in the public sector. Staff earning a full-time equivalent salary of £21,000 or less are protected from the pay freeze and must receive a minimum pay increase of £250 for each of the two years of the pay freeze. In 2011, for staff below the senior civil service, the Ministry of Justice entered the first year of the pay freeze.
	The pay award 2011 for Ministry of Justice staff on ‘Deal’ terms and conditions, awarded basic consolidated increases in salary of £250 to all staff earning below £21,000 in order to protect the lowest-paid members of staff from the pay freeze. Consolidated pay increases were awarded to 15,604 members of staff on Ministry of Justice ‘Deal’ terms and conditions, with the average increase being £448. This figure is made up of 8,088 members of staff receiving consolidated increases of £250 or less and 7,516 receiving incremental progression (to the next position on the pay range) in the Ministry’s lowest pay bands, Bands E and F, where the majority of staff earn less than £21,000.
	The senior civil service pay freeze became effective from 1 April 2010. As such this has meant that there have been no increases to base pay awarded to senior civil servants working at the Ministry of Justice for the performance years 2009-10, 2010-11 and neither will there be for 2011-12.
	National Offender Management Service (NOMS) staff below  senior civil service  (SCS)
	49,480 members of staff in NOMS below the senior civil service received a consolidated pay increase other than promotion in the financial year 2009-10 with an average increase of £866. The figures are based on full-time equivalent salaries.
	27,809 members of staff in NOMS below the senior civil service received a consolidated pay increase in the financial year 2010-11 with an average increase of £590. The figures are based on full-time equivalent salaries.
	The 2010-11 figures include staff earning under £21,000 per annum receiving increases under the Government’s pay freeze guidelines, staff receiving increases through contractual progression and staff receiving both increases under the Government’s pay freeze guidelines and contractual progression.
	Senior civil service
	Performance related pay is awarded to senior civil servants (SCS) in line with recommendations made by the Senior Salaries Review Body. Non-consolidated performance related payments are made as part of the SCS annual pay award to those whose performance has exceeded agreed delivery objectives during the previous performance year. There is no in-year provision.
	The breakdown of senior civil servants within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (including NOMS) who were awarded non-consolidated performance related payments for the performance years 2007-11 inclusive is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Performance year Number of senior civil servants awarded non-consolidated performance related payments 
			 2007-08 161 
			 2008-09 160 
			 2009-10 165 
			 2010-11(1) 59 
			 (1) The Prime Minister, in a statement made on 16 May 2010, announced that for the senior civil service in 2010-11, the top 25% of performers (those in Performance Group 1) in each Department would be eligible to be considered for a non-consolidated performance related payment hence the reduction in the number awarded compared to previous performance years. 
		
	
	Ministry of Justice staff below the  senior civil service  (SCS)
	Ministry of Justice (including NOMS) staff below the senior civil service (SCS) are eligible for in-year and end-year non-consolidated performance related payments to award exceptional performance.
	The following information regarding in-year and end-year non-consolidated performance related payments relating to Ministry of Justice staff below the senior civil service (including NOMS) provides the number of civil servants awarded in-year and end-year payments in separate breakdowns. It should be noted that some civil servants will have received both in-year and end-year payments for the relevant performance years in recognition of exceptional performance throughout the particular year.
	Ministry of Justice staff below the senior civil service (excluding NOMS)
	In-year non-consolidated performance related payments (excluding NOMS)
	The breakdown of staff below the senior civil service (SCS) within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (excluding NOMS) who were awarded in-year non-consolidated performance related payments for the financial years 2007-11 inclusive is as follows:
	
		
			 Financial year Number of staff below SCS awarded in-year non-consolidated performance related payments 
			 2007-08 5,327 
			 2008-09 6,135 
			 2009-10 5,673 
		
	
	
		
			 2010-11 5,228 
		
	
	End-year non-consolidated performance related payments (excluding NOMS)
	End-year non-consolidated performance related payments awarded to staff in the Ministry of Justice and its agencies has been fixed at an amount of £1,200 since 2007.
	The breakdown of staff below the senior civil service (SCS) within the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (excluding NOMS) who were awarded end-year non-consolidated performance related payments for the financial years 2007-11 inclusive is as follows:
	
		
			 Financial year Number of staff below SCS awarded end-year non-consolidated performance related payments 
			 2007-08 2,419 
			 2008-09 1,608 
			 2009-10 1,889 
			 2010-11 1,977 
		
	
	National Offender Management Service (NOMS) staff below senior civil service (SCS)
	In-year non-consolidated performance related payments (NOMS)
	The breakdown of staff below the senior civil service (SCS) within NOMS who were awarded in-year non-consolidated performance related payments for the financial years 2007-11 inclusive is as follows:
	
		
			 Financial year Number of staff below SCS awarded in-year non-consolidated performance related payments 
			 2007-08 3,559 
			 2008-09 3,411 
			 2009-10 2,503 
			 2010-11 1,546 
		
	
	End-year non-consolidated performance related payments (NOMS)
	End-year non-consolidated performance related payments are paid to staff, other than officer grades and operational support grades, who receive an ‘Exceeded’ marking on their end of year assessment. The value of end-year non-consolidated performance related pay is set as part of the pay award and is a standard percentage of salary for all staff who receive it.
	The information on end of year bonuses has been derived from performance appraisal records and assumes that all eligible staff recorded as having an Exceeded marking received a performance bonus during the following year.
	The breakdown of staff below the senior civil service (SCS) within NOMS who were awarded in-year non-consolidated performance related payments for the financial years 2007-11 inclusive is as follows:
	
		
			 Financial year Number of staff below SCS awarded end-year non-consolidated performance related payments 
			 2007/-08 4,817 
			 2008-09 5,332 
			 2009-10 5,256 
			 2010-11 5,950

East Sutton Park Prison: Discipline

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many girls have been put on the anti-social behaviour programme in the Mary Carpenter Unit in East Sutton Park prison (a) more than once and (b) in each month in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2011.

Crispin Blunt: The Mary Carpenter Unit is part of Eastwood Park prison. Information on the number of young women placed on the antisocial behaviour programme on the Mary Carpenter Unit is represented in the following table. Over the period 1 January 2010 to 31 October 2011, five young women were placed on the antisocial behaviour programme more than once.
	
		
			  2010 2011 
			 January 1 0 
			 February 2 0 
			 March 4 0 
			 April 6 2 
			 May 1 1 
			 June 0 0 
			 July 0 0 
			 August 0 0 
			 September 1 0 
			 October 2 4 
			 November 0 * 
			 December 0 *

Legal Aid Scheme

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on the possible effect of reform of legal aid to new entrants to the legal profession; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Jonathan Djanogly: A number of the responses to consultation gave views as to the impact of the reforms on new entrants to the legal profession, and similar issues have been raised since during engagement with representative bodies.

Legal Aid Scheme: Prisoners

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many prisoners serving sentences in England and Wales for (a) murder and (b) manslaughter have received legal aid for proceedings in the family courts relating to (i) custody of children, (ii) adoption of children, (iii) contact with children and (iv) parental responsibility in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many prisoners currently serving sentences in England and Wales for (a) rape, (b) sexual offences against adults and (c) sexual offences against children have received legal aid for proceedings in the family courts relating to (i) custody of children, (ii) adoption of children, (iii) contact with children and (iv) parental responsibility.

Jonathan Djanogly: This information is not kept by either the Ministry of Justice or the Legal Services Commission.

Prison Sentences: Human Rights

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 18 October 2011, Official Report, column 850W, on prison sentences: human rights, what estimate he has made of the total amount paid to all offenders who have claimed compensation on human rights grounds in the last 12 months.

Crispin Blunt: The information is not readily available to allow such an estimate to be calculated, and it could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Providing the information from the Ministry of Justice alone would involve the individual examination of several thousand files.
	NOMS records litigation claims by the main type of allegation. Claims often make reference to alleged breaches of human rights. In some cases the claim will be brought wholly on an HRA basis. In others an HRA basis of claim will be but one of a number of alleged grounds of claim.

Prisoners: Location

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders are serving a sentence in a prison located in or near the community where the offence took place in England and Wales.

Crispin Blunt: Information is not held centrally on the location in which prisoners’ offences were committed. However, information is held on the court which dealt with the initial case.
	The following table shows the number of prisoners as at 30 September 2011 who were being held in a prison in the same criminal justice area as the initial sentencing court.
	
		
			  Number 
			 Total sentenced and non-criminal prisoners 73,951 
			 Of which:  
			 Held in same area as the recorded court 24,414 
			 Held outside of area 46,691 
			 Unknown court information 2,846 
		
	
	In the management of the prison population the aim is to hold prisoners in establishments that provide the level of security required, are suitable for their gender, age and legal status, provide special facilities appropriate to prisoner needs as well as being near to their homes or the courts dealing with their cases.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners: Location

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effect on victims of crime placing offenders in a prison located in or near the community where the offence took place; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: The National Offender Management Service aims to hold prisoners in establishments that provide the degree of security they require; are suitable to their gender, age and legal status; provide special facilities appropriate to prisoner needs; and are near to their homes or the courts dealing with their cases. With respect to holding prisoners close to their homes, where appropriate, maintaining family ties and constructive links to local communities are important protective factors that increase the likelihood of successful, law abiding rehabilitation on eventual release.
	Prisoners on remand and those newly sentenced prior to allocation to other establishments (typically, a training prison) are held in local prisons, whose primary function is to serve the courts.
	When allocating prisoners within the closed estate, it is not practical to avoid particular locations to take account of the effect on victims unless there are specific risks that needed to be addressed. If, later in the course of the sentence, consideration is given for a move to open conditions, the location of known victims should be taken into account.

Prisoners: Per Capita Costs

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his most recent estimate is of the average annual cost of a prison place in (a) England and (b) Wales including costs (i) at establishment level, (ii) at head office level and (iii) from other services provided by other Government Departments.

Crispin Blunt: Prison costs are produced on the basis of expenditure met by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). It is not possible to identify expenditure met by all Government Departments, as it would incur disproportionate cost and expenditure related to prisoners is not always separately identified. The following table provides average annual cost of a prison place in England and Wales at Establishment and Head Office level for financial year 2010-11. It also shows the allocation of expenditure for education services only in 2010-11.
	
		
			 2010-11 
			 £ 
			  Direct cost Central cost Overall cost Education cost Total cost 
			 Per place      
			 Wales 39,107 12,221 51,328 1,109 52,436 
			 England 28,450 10,808 39,258 2,378 41,636 
			       
			 Per prisoner      
			 Wales 28,234 8,823 37,057 800 37,857 
			 England 26,934 10,232 37,167 2,252 39,418 
		
	
	
		
			 Notes: 1. Displayed figures are subject to rounding. 2. Cost per place is expressed in terms of the baseline certified normal accommodation.  3. Establishment cost includes costs met locally by the public sector prison establishments and private sector prisons' costs. 4. Head office (central) costs include prison related costs met regionally and nationally by NOMS; for example, property costs including depreciation, major maintenance, prisoner escort and custody service (relates to transporting prisoners) and central HQ overheads. This involves some estimation. 5. Impairment charges, including the revaluation of land and buildings (£6.9 million) are not included. 6. Expenditure recharged to the Youth Justice Board in respect of young people is included. 7. The figures for 2010-11 are not directly comparable with previous years' published figures due to the change in accounting treatment arising from the Government's Clear Line of Sight initiative. This is mainly due to the exclusion of cost of capital charges in expenditure reported from 1 April 2010. 8. The education costs are funds allocated in 2010-11 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the Welsh Government and the Youth Justice Board.

Prisons: Conditions of Employment

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what (a) sick pay entitlement and (b) pension provision applies to a prison officer working in (i) a state-run prison and (ii) a privately run prison.

Crispin Blunt: The information requested is as follows.
	(a) (i) Prison officers in public service prisons are normally entitled to a maximum of six months sick leave on full pay during any period of 12 months followed by half pay, subject to a maximum of 12 months sick absence in any period of four years.
	If the absence is as a result of an injury or illness sustained in the course of duty, the period of absence on full pay can be extended by up to a maximum of six months in any four years. If an injury is due to an assault in the course of duty (or an assault not on duty but clearly connected with official duties), the period of absence on full pay will be extended for the total period of sick leave.
	(a) (ii) Information from the private sector will vary from company to company. As an example from one prison establishment, a prison custody officer in a privately run prison is paid company sick pay equal to full pay up to the following maximum amounts in any 12 month period:
	Up to two years' service—six weeks
	After two years' service—eight weeks
	After five years' service—10 weeks
	After 10 years' service—12 weeks
	(b) (i) Prison officers in public service prisons are eligible to be covered by the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS). The Civil Service has five different pension schemes:
	Classic
	Classic plus
	Premium
	Nuvos
	Partnership
	Classic, Classic Plus and Premium are defined benefit pension schemes, but were closed to new entrants from July 2007. Nuvos is a defined benefit pension scheme and Partnership is a stakeholder pension account with employer contributions.
	(b) (ii) Information from the private sector will vary from company to company. As an example from one prison establishment, a prison custody officer in a privately run prison is eligible to be covered by a Group Personal Pension Plan which is a defined contribution pension scheme with employer contributions.

Prisons: Conditions of Employment

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what is the average (a) gross salary and (b) annual leave entitlement of a prison officer working in a (i) state prison and (ii) privately-run prison.

Crispin Blunt: Information from the private sector will vary from company to company. As an example using data from one privately run prison establishment, the average gross salary and annual leave entitlement for public service prison officers and privately run prison custody officers is:
	
		
			  (a) Average gross salary (per annum) (b) Average annual leave entitlement (days) 
			 (i) Public service prison officer (1)27,940 27.5 
			 (ii) Privately run prison custody officer(2) 21,413 31.8 
			 (1) Includes base pay and pensionable allowances. (2) Based on data from one privately run prison establishment.

Prisons: Discipline

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) male and (b) female prisoners were subject to informal punishment after adjudication in each prison in (i) 2009 and (ii) 2010.

Crispin Blunt: Prisoners who commit offences against the prison or young offender institution rules are dealt with through an internal disciplinary system known as adjudications, and if found guilty they may receive any of the punishments allowed under the rules. Adjudications are governed by formal procedures published in Prison Service Instruction 47/2011 (which is available on the Ministry of Justice website) and there is no authority for any form of informal punishment either following adjudication or in any other circumstances.

Public Sector: Misconduct

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what information his Department holds on the power of the (a) police and (b) Crown Prosecution Service to bring to prosecution the Offence of Misconduct in Public Office, following the rulings made by Judge Darlow in the case of R v. Laloi 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: My Department is not aware of anything in the case of R v.Laloi which would affect the ability of the police or the Crown Prosecution Service to bring prosecutions for the offence of misconduct in public office, or that it modified the offence in any way.
	The CPS reviews all cases that are referred to it by the police in accordance with the test set out in Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code). Where there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction for misconduct in a public office, and it is in the public interest, the CPS will prosecute.

Reoffenders

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what comparative assessment he has made of reoffending rates for those offenders participating in the Intensive Alternative to Custody pilot scheme with reoffending rates of similar offenders receiving custodial sentences of less than 12 months.

Crispin Blunt: To date no such comparative assessment has been made, although the MOJ is currently looking at the feasibility of conducting an evaluation of the IAC pilots which should compare reoffending rates for IAC offenders with reoffending rates for similar offenders receiving custodial sentences of less than 12 months. In July 2011, the MOJ published a short report with the main findings from a range of research exploring the learning from the Intensive Alternatives to Custody (IAC) pilot schemes. Further process evaluations of the IAC pilot sites are currently being concluded and will be published in due course.

Sentencing

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has any plans for a national roll-out of intensive alternative to custody schemes.

Crispin Blunt: There is no single model of IAC to roll out but the Government are committed to implementing the key elements of the projects. MOJ has disseminated the findings of the pilot studies with a view to good practice being incorporated into mainstream activity via intensive community orders. In addition we have recently announced a review of community sentences which we intend will lead to a formal public consultation.

Sexual Offences: Rehabilitation

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisons are running a sex offender treatment programme in England and Wales.

Crispin Blunt: There are 22 sites that run an accredited sex offender treatment programme of some type. This includes provision in private prisons.

Sexual Offences: Rehabilitation

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners (a) are participating in and (b) have declined to participate in the sex offender treatment programme in England and Wales since it was first introduced.

Crispin Blunt: Details of how many prisoners are participating in and who have declined to participate in the sex offender treatment programmes in England and Wales since it was first introduced are not held centrally. These figures could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost by collecting information held on offender files or on local data systems, validating it, and then collating it in a common format in order to provide a response.

Sexual Offences: Rehabilitation

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effect of the sex offender treatment programme on post-release outcomes.

Crispin Blunt: An outcome study (Friendship, Mann and Beech, 2003) compared the two-year reconviction rates of 647 adult male offenders who had taken part in the core sex offender treatment programme (SOTP) between 1992 and 1994, with 1,910 adult male offenders who had not taken part in the core SOTP. The two samples were matched on year of discharge and shared the same broad characteristics. The treated offenders had statistically significantly lower sexual and/or violent reconviction rates at two years than the untreated offenders (4.6% compared to 8.1%). The biggest impact on reconviction occurred with medium risk offenders. Low risk offenders were very unlikely to reconvict whether treated or not, and the core SOTP did not seem to be sufficient treatment for high risk sex offenders. Following this research, an additional treatment programme has been developed to increase the intensity of treatment with high and very high risk sexual offenders.

Translation Services: Public Expenditure

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the total cost to the public purse was of providing translation services to foreign offenders supervised by the (a) National Offender Management Service and (b) Probation Service in each of the last five years.

Crispin Blunt: The National Offender Management Services central accounting system does not separately record costs of providing translation services to foreign offenders either in prison or on probation. It would incur disproportionate cost to examine and collate such costs from each respective establishments and probation trusts.

Young Offenders

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to update the ASSET document used to identify the needs of young offenders in the justice pathway; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: ASSET is a structured assessment tool used by Youth Offending Teams in England and Wales on all young offenders who come into contact with the criminal justice system. The Youth Justice Board are currently developing a detailed business case for options to review and redesign ASSET.
	Youth Justice practitioners and stakeholders have been consulted on a preferred option through a statement of intent consultation phase, and the outcome of this has fed into the business case development. A decision on any update of ASSET will be informed by the final business case and a decision is likely shortly.